


Power Rangers 2: Rise of the Green Ranger

by IzzyIniguez



Category: Power Rangers, Power Rangers (2017)
Genre: Drama, F/F, F/M, Gen, Original Character(s), Romance, Sequel, Writing the sequel we deserve, squint and you can see jason/billy
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-16
Updated: 2019-10-06
Packaged: 2019-11-18 23:57:10
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 33,746
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18128219
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IzzyIniguez/pseuds/IzzyIniguez
Summary: My sequel to the 2017 Power Rangers movie that we all deserve.Rita loses her coin, but finds a new power.  The rangers learn to be a team and meet the Tommy and Tamsin Oliver, the new (twin) kids in town.  Sparks fly and tempers flare between Kim and Tommy, and Trini and Tamsin.  Follows a similar storyline as the show, but with Tommy's twin sister in a fray.





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Angel Grove in the original series was set in Southern California, probably near Los Angeles as where the majority of the filming took place. For the sake of the reboot movie, Angel Grove in this fic will be slightly further north towards Ventura county where dairy farms are and still close to the coast where commercial fishing occurs. There will be words from the Jicarilla Apache language. Shi Dadee (pronounced da-deh) means my sister, shi na’áá means my brother, shish dazha means younger brother/sister, dade' (near same pronunciation as dadee only with a shorter ending) means older sister, máá means mother, ka'éé means father. There's a wonderful little app made by the Jicarilla Apache tribe called JicarillaApache available for free where you can learn more words and a bit of the tribe's culture and history. Check it out!

Prologue

The vacuum of space without the protective armor was something she’d never felt before.  It wasn’t too different than being hit by an explosion and thrown into the ocean and mummified for 65 million years, but it wasn’t the same either.  At first the cold hit her almost instantly before she froze, and her ears popped painfully and then silence.  She was unmoving and couldn’t focus on where she floated; she was unable to see anything but blurred light from the sun.  She couldn’t feel anything either but, most importantly, she could no longer feel the warmth of the green power coin.

Oh, the coin, how she missed its warmth; its power.  Now she felt empty as if something was ripped out of her chest.  She longed for the power.  All she could do was think and remember the feeling of that power surging through her, but she could do nothing except float and think.  If only she could move.  If only space wasn’t devoid of everything.  How long was she even out there? 

_Not long, my dear,_ a voice said in the back of her mind.  Who was that?  How were they able to communicate with her?  Where were they?  _Rita, how could you forget me so easily?_ Was it…?  It couldn’t be… _But it is, my dear._

_My lord, Zedd?_   Rita thought back.

_Yes, it is I.  You failed at acquiring the crystal, didn’t you?_ If Rita could close her eyes and hang her head in shame, she would.  She said nothing.  _I admire the fact that you defeated your old team on your own.  You have strength I did not anticipate, but this new team is unlike yours.  They have a leader who views himself on their level.  Zordon thought himself above the rest of you, did he not?_

_Yes,_ Rita thought bitterly.

_This team is more connected than yours was.  You can defeat them, and I can help you.  We can take the zeo crystal and rule Earth together._

_How?_

_I’ve sent a ship to the Earth’s moon.  Once you’re in range, it will grab you and bring you in.  Regain your strength and use what you need.  The ship is my gift to you to do with as you please._

_Why?_

_Because, like you, I want the crystal.  I want to rule this galaxy, but I cannot accomplish it alone.  I am not beneath admitting I need assistance.  You, my dear, are the perfect partner._ Partner.  If Rita could, she’d have scoffed.  She had had partners, she had had a team, and they ostracized her because she was willing to do what they couldn’t.  Partners would betray, they’d turn against one another until one was left to take the glory. _My dearest Rita, you should know better than to think that of me.  I am Lord Zedd of the Vicca Galaxy, Emperor of all I see, and even I know I must acquire help to conquer the universe.  Think about it, I give you the means to take down the new power rangers and together we take the zeo crystal and with its power, we take over the galaxy.  You can have reign over all of Earth.  It will be yours._

Now that was something different.  _But how will I know you won’t betray me?_ Rita asked.

_Same as I know you won’t use what I will give you against me.  Trust._

Trust.  She supposed that she could finally put some trust into someone who’s willing to give her the means to destroy those in her way.  The more she thought about it, the more she realized Zedd was right.  She had managed to win against the power rangers, not once, but twice on her own.  And both times she was very close.  Perhaps a little assistance would be the game changer this time around.  _Very well, Lord Zedd.  I accept your offer and your gifts._

_Wonderful.  This shall be a partnership that will be remembered for all eternity.  Lord Zedd and Rita Repulsa, a force to be reckoned with!_

It certainly made Rita excited.  She’d have her glory after all, only she’d have to share the glory but if she were allowed to have reign over Earth on her own, well then, that would be a great win. 

_And also,_ Zedd added, _I left an assistant for you on the ship.  His name is Finster.  He is a master sculptor who can make warriors should you require._

If Rita could smile, she would.  Perhaps this outcome would not be so horrible after all.


	2. Welcome to Angel Grove

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Oliver twins go to detention.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tommy's likeness is based off Evan Saucedo, Tamsin based off Devery Jacobs. I’m also changing up Trini’s parents to Jacob Vargas and Constance Marie. All teens around 17 and juniors in high school.

Welcome to Angel Grove

Mornings are never easy for Trini.  The sun loves to sneak in loudly through the window curtains and slap her in the face.  Then of course the heat that follows, as if the night before wasn’t hot enough, always makes her feel gross and sticky.  The damned California heat.  It was different than the heat she was used to in New Mexico, where she had spent a majority of her childhood; a place she misses dearly.  There it was a drier type of heat, one where it didn’t feel as if she was choking on moisture in the air.  Here, however, the heat was more humid, especially being so close to the beach, and it always left her feeling so sticky that she needed to shower three times a day.  It was a big reason why she slept with a sheet rather than a comforter.

Trini looked at the alarm clock and frowned as it hadn’t even gone off yet.  There was still two minutes before she was supposed to wake up.  How irritating.  Still, she knew she needed to get up and get ready for Saturday detention.  It wasn’t as if she regretted getting detention- she loved spending time with her friends, though she’d never admit it- it’s just that she wasn’t much of a morning person.  She loved to sleep in and stay up late. 

“Trinidad!” her mother called out from downstairs, “Are you up?!”

With a heavy sigh, Trini turned her alarm clock off before it could sound off and removed her sheet and sat up, throwing her legs over the side of the bed.  “Yeah!” she called back, “I’m up!”  She leaned to her nightstand and grabbed her glasses and her phone then checked her texts.  A small smile creeped onto her face when she saw the group chat.

**_ Justice League _ **

**_Boss Man (6:32 am):_** _Anyone know how to do logarithms? I’m so lost._

**_Evel Knievel (6:32 am):_ ** _LOL wut?_

**_Kimmy Gibbler (6:35 am):_ ** _just use the calculator_

**_Boss Man (6:35 am):_ ** _I gotta show work._

**_Kimmy Gibbler(6:36 am):_ ** _how r u gonna show work for those problems?_

**_Billy Joel (6:40 am):_ ** _I can make up some notes in detention for you._

**_Boss Man (6:40 am):_ ** _Thanks man._

**_You (6:47 am):_ ** _I think I should still have my notes from when I took Algebra 2 last year.  I don’t have time to look for them now but I can tonight._

**_Boss Man (6:47 am):_ ** _I’d appreciate it Trini.  Thanks._

**_You (6:48 am):_ ** _No problemo._

She put her phone down and finally got to her feet.

It didn’t take long for Trini to get herself together.  Her contacts that gave a hint of grey to her eyes, the slightest touch of makeup, her favorite ripped jeans, grey tank top, and a green and white flannel.  She felt good.  Her last accessory, she decided on her mustard yellow beanie.  She grabbed her cell and started a text:

**_ Kimmy Gibbler + You _ **

**_You (7:09 am):_ ** _Hey Kimmy, still picking me up?_

**_Kimmy Gibbler (7:09 am):_ ** _yep b there in 10_

Trini smiled and put her phone in her back pocket then proceeded down stairs, heading into the kitchen.  Her mother was in there cooking breakfast and by the smell of it she was cooking juevos rancheros, Trini’s favorite, although she’d never admit it.  “’Morning,” Trini said softly before taking a seat at the kitchen island, facing her mother’s back.

“Good morning,” June replied, “Breakfast is almost done.”

“Thanks.”  There was a heavy pause before Trini added, “Smells good.”

June turned her head slightly towards Trini and a small smile crept on her face, “Of course it does.  I made it.”

Trini returned the smile and let out a small chuckle.  She couldn’t deny her mother was a fantastic cook.  She could only hope to be a fraction of a cook that she was.  “Do we have tortillas?”

“Yes!” June replied excitedly, pointing at the refrigerator, “Heat some up, yeah?  I went to that new Vallarta yesterday.”

“In Oxnard?”  Trini rose and walked to the refrigerator pulling out the tortillas, “That’s a little far isn’t it?”  She began to heat up the tortillas on the stove next to her mother.

“Yeah, well, did you want fake ranchera?” June asked with a laugh, “Besides, I wanted to visit your tía Jenni anyways.”  They continued in silence, Trini heating up several tortillas.  June finished and began to place the juevos rancheros on a plate just as Trini began to make two burritos.  “How many more weeks of detention do you have?”

Trini stopped moving and took a breath.  _Here we go,_ she thought to herself.  They were doing well, she didn’t want her morning ruined by this talk, “Three more weeks.”  June nodded silently.  “What?”

“Nothing,” June said with slight hesitation in her voice.

“No, you have that look on your face.”

“What look?”

“The one you get when I’ve pissed you off.”

“Hey, watch your tone,” June warned, “And I’m not pissed.  I was just asking because the twins’ soccer team is in the playoffs and they wanted their big sister there.”

“Oh,” was all Trini could muster.  She felt stupid.  “I’m sorry.”

June sighed as she turned away from her daughter, placed the pan in the sink and began to pour herself a cup of coffee.  “I know I’ve been hovering around you since we moved here but I am trying to give you space, Trini.”

It took a moment for Trini to absorb that statement.  It was true, and she knew she needed to cut her mother some slack.  Especially how warm her mother has been since Trini came home a mess after Rita’s attack.  June had been calling and texting and since Trini was a bit busy, she couldn’t put her mother at ease.  When Trini had walked in, June all but scooped her up in her arms.  June cried tears of relief at seeing that Trini was alive.  “I know, Mamí.  I’m sorry.  I do appreciate it.”

With a smile and a nod, June turned to face Trini, “I’m still not happy you got detention for breaking a locker.  How did you even do that?”

“It was already broken, and some bullies wrote really horrible things about Kim on it.”  As if on cue Trini’s phone beeped, “Oh, that’s her.  She’s here.”  She grabbed a couple paper towels and turned to her mother and stopped when she saw a quizzical look on her face, “What now?”

“Mija, I just want you to be honest with me about Kimberly.”

“Mamí, please.”

“Look, I’m still wrapping my head around this, that you like,” June paused, composing herself, “Girls, but please, Trinidad, just be honest with me.”

Trini scrunched her face; she hated when anyone called her by her full name, “Okay, I promise.  But I promise you, Kimberly is just a friend.”  Another beep.  “Okay, I gotta go,” she sped up to her mother and gave her a quick hug and kiss on the cheek, “Love you, Mamí.”

“Love you too, Mija.  Text if you’re going out with your friends!”

Trini was already out of the kitchen, “Will do!”  She grabbed her backpack and ran out the door and straight to Kim’s black sedan.  “Hey, Gibbler,” she greeted as she put on her seat belt.

Kim shook her head with a smile, “Why do you call me that?”  She began to drive forward.

“Would you prefer ‘Kimmy?’”

“Yeah, actually I would.  Much better than ‘Gibbler.’”

“I made you a burrito.”

Kim smiled, “I’m sure it was actually your mom who made it, and why are you changing the subject?”

“It’s juevos rancheros.  It’s really good.”

It was useless, Trini was going to keep changing the subject.  Kim reached down to the cup holder and picked up a thick paper cup and handed it to Trini.  “I picked up our coffees on my way to your house.  Dark roast with vanilla soy milk and a Splenda.”

Trini smiled and handed Kim her burrito.  They continued their chatter all the way to school.

\-----

It didn’t take long for the girls to get to school.  When they arrived at school, they found the boys waiting for them at the entrance.  They all waved to each other as the girls stepped out of the car.

“Why does Trini get picked up?” Zack asked as he hopped up from his sitting position on the stairs, a playful smile on his face.

“Because I’m awesome,” Trini answered as they entered the school.

“And because she lives on my way here,” Kimberly added.

“Aww and here I thought it’s because you enjoyed my company,” Trini whined, feigning a hurt expression.

“I do.  More than these guys, haha!”

“Okay, that’s just rude,” Zack quipped.

“Yeah, honestly, I’m a little hurt,” Jason said, his hand on his chest before cracking a smile.

Billy simply laughed.

The group arrived at Billy’s locker, all talking animatedly to each other, some talking over another, when the hallway doors opened and in walked the two new kids at school.  They’d seen the boy the week before in detention, but the girl they hadn’t seen before.  At least, not on Saturday.

“Yo, it’s the new kids.  What’s the dude’s name again?” Zack asked aloud.

“Todd?” Jason offered.

“Timmy, wasn’t it?” Billy said.

“Tommy,” Trini huffed, “His name is Tommy.  I think that’s his sister.  Don’t know her name though.”

“How’d you know that?” Zack asked.

“Because, unlike you losers, I actually pay attention.”

The group laughed amongst themselves as Billy gathered his belongings and they all headed to detention together.

\-----

They had only lived in Angel Grove for three weeks and Tommy Oliver was already in his second week of Saturday detention.  He hadn’t thought much of this town.  This town that was vastly different from his previous home in Dulce, New Mexico.  The humidity was gross, yet it could be quite chilly, and the people were pretty much jerks.  His third day he had gotten into a fight because some jock pulled at his long hair, which were in braids, and then proceeded to throw homophobic and transphobic slurs at him.  Tommy believed sexuality was on a spectrum and although he felt he leaned more on the straight side, he kept an open mind about it.  And although he wasn’t transgendered, but he sure as hell wouldn’t take to someone being so blatantly transphobic and promptly punched the jock square in the nose successfully making him bleed.  Besides, he and his family were Apache and braids, though not as common with the southwestern and pueblo tribes, were still worn by many tribes.  Several punches later and here he was, his second week of his four-week detention sentence.  Today, his hair was in a low pony tail, reaching below his shoulders but above his shoulder blades, and his black eye was healing nicely.

Tamsin was Tommy’s twin sister, born only six minutes before him, and has an older sibling complex, despite being 5’3” to Tommy’s 5’10”.  When she had heard what had happened to her little brother, she confronted the guy and his friends and punched him.  However, since her attack was “unprovoked”- and she would always make sure everyone knew how she felt about that- her sentence was six weeks, and this was her first Saturday.  She made sure to wear her own hair in a chongo for her very first Saturday; a more common hairstyle among the southwestern and pueblo tribes, particularly the Navajo, where the hair was in a twist-like bun tied with a ribbon or twine. 

“I still can’t believe you went after that guy,” Tommy said to Tamsin as they walked through the hall, passing a group of five other kids, “You know you shouldn’t be going after people and picking fights.”

“Okay, but he shouldn’t have put his hands on you,” Tamsin countered.

“No, and that’s why I fought him and his buddy.  And won,” Tommy smirked, “But you didn’t have to go after him.  That was overkill.”

“Maybe,” then Tamsin smirked and put an arm around her brother, “But you’re my shish dazha and I love you.”

“Get off,” Tommy said, pretending to be disgusted, “You’re such a sap, Tammy.”

“Hey,” Tamsin said seriously, smacking Tommy’s shoulder, “Don’t call me that.”

They continued walking until they arrived at detention.  The room was large and dated looking and both Tommy and Tamsin made their way together toward the side of the class, sitting down at desks next to each other. The red headed bully, the one Tommy nicknamed Ed Sheeran, called out a mocking war cry, but Tommy and Tamsin ignored it.

Then the group of five came in, laughing and scattering to their separate seats.  The group split and went to their respective seats and both Tommy and Tamsin noticed how odd they looked together.  The white boy, Jason, if the trophy display in the front of the school were to be trusted, had a definite athletic feel to him, walking with confidence and ease.  The Asian kid, who’s name they hadn’t a clue, has an aura of mischief to him.  He was surely the Trickster of the group, that the twins would bet on.  Then there was the taller of the two girls with shorter hair; she was possibly biracial and almost stupidly beautiful.  Neither Tommy nor Tamsin were sure, but they think her name is Kimberly, only because she had heard cheerleaders talking of her.  The African American kid, Billy he called himself, seemed the sweetest of the group and most likely the brains.  Finally, there was the short girl whom the twins would guess was Latina. 

\-----

This girl was impossibly gorgeous in such a way that it looked like she didn’t even try and right then, she took Tamsin’s breath away.  She was short but walked with this force that could plow through walls.  Tamsin didn’t know her name, but she looked so good in her flannel and her beanie and she was walking towards Tamsin right now and all ability to speak left her throat as her eyes went wide.

“Hey,” the short girl greeted before sitting down next to her. 

_Why didn’t she sit near her friends?_ Tamsin thought to herself, _Actually, why didn’t any of them sit next to each other?  Oh shit, are these assigned seats?  Oh shit, I better say something.  Be cool, Tamsin._   “Sup.”  _What the hell was that?_ The girl smiled a small and crooked smile before turning to her backpack and pulling out her notebooks.  _Goddamn, Tamsin, what the hell?  One cute girl says “hey” and you become a mess?  Tommy is going to have a field day with this._ She felt a poke at her arm and she turned toward Tommy who mouthed “What happened?”  Tamsin shook her head indicating she’d tell him later.  She turned back to her workbook and tried to not be obvious that she was pretty much frozen.  But she still needed to find out if the seats were assigned and she was either going to ask her brother, or the cute girl right next to her.  And like the amazing and confident rebel she was, she turned and asked Tommy “Na’áá, are there assigned seats?”  Tommy only shrugged.

“No,” the girl replied.  Tamsin turned back to look at her.  “They’re not.”

“Oh,” Tamsin paused, her mouth a little dry, “Because I saw you and your friends walk in together and you guys didn’t sit near each other.”

The girl smiled and let out an airy chuckle, “That’s because Mr. Dumphy said we were talking too much.  We’re the only ones with _assigned_ seats.”

“I see.”  Tamsin smiled, she wanted to keep talking to this girl, but she didn’t know how to continue the conversation.  Then she noticed the girl was still looking for something.  “Lose something?”

“Yeah, I can’t find our workbook.”  The girl finally took her hands out of her backpack and huffed, “Shit.”

“Well I’ve got mine, you can use it.”  Tamsin offered up her book.

“Thanks,” the girl said, a small and somewhat shy smile spread across her face.  She took the book and turned to the page she needed and quickly took a picture of the page with her phone before giving it back.

“No problem.  I’m Tamsin.  Tamsin Oliver.  This is my twin brother Tommy,” Tamsin introduced, pointing behind her.  Tommy waved and offered a half smile. 

“Trini Kwan.”

“Kwan?”

Trini nodded, “Yeah, long story short: my dad’s stepdad was Chinese American and legally adopted my dad when he married my grandma when my dad was a kid.  My full last name is Kwan-Gomez.”

“That’s actually a cool story.  Pretty unique.”

“Yeah, well, I’m a unique individual I guess.”  That made Tamsin smile.  She was really enjoying talking to this girl.  “So, twins?  How’s that?”

Tamsin smiled and rolled her eyes, “Interesting to say the least.”

Trini was nodding in agreement.  “I have two younger brothers.  Nine years old.  _Twins_.”

“Oh wow.”  Tamsin couldn’t help the laugh that escaped her.  “That’s unfortunate.”

Trini only nodded.

Then Mr. Dumphy walked in, shuffling down the stairs, “Good morning everyone!  You know the routine, if you don’t have any assignments, please open your workbooks and begin as soon as possible.  First break will be at 10.”  He nearly dumped his papers onto the desk.  “Okay, time for roll call…”

\-----

A note flew at Trini and she caught it with ease.  She glared at the direction of which it came and saw Zack with his shit-eating-grin.  She had half a mind to not even open the note, but her curiosity was strong and not to mention she felt ridiculously flustered talking to Tamsin.  That girl was so ridiculously pretty, not to mention nice, that it threw Trini off her game immensely.  Finally, she opened the note:

_Pretty girl, ain’t she?  Get her number yet?_

Complete with a horrible drawing of a winking emoji.  Trini rolled her eyes and folded the paper and shoved it in her bag.  She looked up towards Zack and discreetly flipped him off followed by her sticking out her tongue.  Writing back to him was not a priority at the moment.

“Okay, everyone, it’s 10 o’clock.  Break time.  Be back in 10 minutes please,” Mr. Dumphy called out.

Tamsin stood up and stretched, “Is there a vending machine or something?”

“Yeah, I’ll show you,” Trini replied, standing up also.

As they walked, Tommy said, “I’ll join you.”

As they were about to reach the stairs, Kim joined them, “Hey!” she exclaimed, “Mind if I tag along?  The boys are being kind of annoying.”

“Aren’t they always?”  Trini rolled her eyes at them, “I swear they’re as bad as my brothers.  Oh,” Trini shook her head, “Sorry, um, Kim, this is Tamsin and Tommy, guys, this is Kimberly.”

They shook hands and made their way up the stairs and into the hallway.  Slowly, Kim and Tommy fell a few steps behind, talking to each other while Trini lead the way with Tamsin right next to her.  The silence between them was slightly awkward and just a little heavy, but it was also a little exciting.  Neither girl could really put her finger on it.

Finally, Tamsin asked a question, “So are you originally from Angel Grove?”  A generic conversational question, but at least it wasn’t awkward.

Trini shook her, “No.  I’m actually from Hawaii.”  Tamsin raised an eyebrow in question.  “My dad was in the air force and was stationed in Honolulu when I was born.  Lived there until I was about seven then moved four more times since.”

“Wow,” Tamsin drawled, “That’s a lot of moving.  I’ve only ever lived in New Mexico.”

“Really?!” Trini exclaimed, “I did too.  In Alamogordo.”

“That’s a little far from where I was.  I was in Dulce.  Lived on the outskirts of the Jicarilla Apache Reservation.  My family, we’re Jicarilla Apache.”

“That’s dope.”

“Yeah,” Tamsin said with longing in her voice, “I haven’t even been here a month and I miss the Rez already.  Hate this humidity.”

“Tell me about it,” Trini agreed, “I miss that dry heat from the desert.”  The more she learned about Tamsin, the giddier she got.  How incredible was it that she met someone who was from a state she lived in?  Her and Tommy both took boxing and kick boxing lessons and even competed back in New Mexico, but the shocker was that Tamsin really liked to ice skate.  It was likely because it was rare to have a functioning ice rink in the desert.  But damn did she look good in her light brown suede jacket with a black hood.  Trini was so caught up in her thoughts she almost missed the corner to the cafeteria.  “Oh, down this way.”

They got their snacks and made their way back to detention.  Trini stole a glance behind her and smiled at Kim having an animated conversation with Tommy.  It was about time someone who knew her as a clean slate gave her attention.  Kim deserved it.  She lived with her guilt for weeks and even apologized to Amanda, which ended in a civil manner.  The cheerleaders no longer bothered Kim nor Trini nor anyone else.  It did seem like Kim and Tommy were smiling at each other a whole lot though.

“I think my brother thinks your friend is cute,” Tamsin whispered.

“I think you’re right.”

“Well, this school surprised me with cute people.”

Trini turned to Tamsin but couldn’t quite read the look on her face.  _Did she just flirt?_ Trini thought.  Well, if she did, Trini would have to retort.  “Yeah, well, cute new kids seem to be a trend.”  A ghost of a smirk made its way to Trini’s face and she swore she saw a twinkle in Tamsin’s eyes.

\-----

How long had she been floating in space?  Too long.  She didn’t even know how many days, perhaps weeks have passed.  All she could do was stare at the Earth as she drifted, unable to move or even turn her eyes.  She would kill to be able to focus her eyes on something else.

But alas, all that was in front of her was that floating rock that contained the zeo crystal she so desperately wanted.  If only she could move her hands to muster some kind of power, some kind of energy. 

Then suddenly she felt a warmth surround her and she was being pulled.  Finally, some force moving her!  It could only mean one thing: Finster!  Zedd’s henchman that he gifted her.  She must be close to the moon for the tracker beam to reach her.  So close now.  Once she’s on the base and thawed and rested, she’ll work on her army and send those pesky rangers gifts.  Make them distracted while she locates her coin. 

_Soon you brats.  Soon…_

_To be continued..._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Angel Grove in the original series was set in Southern California, probably near Los Angeles as where the majority of the filming took place. For the sake of the reboot movie, Angel Grove in this fic will be slightly further north towards Ventura county where dairy farms are and still close to the coast where commercial fishing occurs. There will be words from the Jicarilla Apache language. Shi Dadee (pronounced da-deh) means my sister, shi na’áá means my brother, shish dazha means younger brother/sister, dade' (near same pronunciation as dadee only with a shorter ending) means older sister, máá means mother, ka'éé means father. There's a wonderful little app made by the Jicarilla Apache tribe available for free where you can learn more words and a bit of the tribe's culture and history. Check it out!


	3. Contacts and other Things

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Training and making contact

Contacts and Other Things

It didn’t take long for Rita to gain her strength back.  A mere few days in the energy tank and she was back at full capacity.  Well, as full as she could be without her green coin.  Thankfully she still had her partial armor still and that gave her a good boost. 

She was in her quarters, a quaint, cozy room with a bed and a mirror.  She didn’t need much else.  Looking at herself in the mirror, she could never quite get used to her face.  Surely, she was beautiful compared to her former team.  Hell, compared to the humans she was a goddess.  And soon, she would rule them and make them bow before her and beg like the insolent fools they are. 

“My mistress?”

The voice belonging to Finster shook Rita from her thoughts and she looked at the mirror and saw the white, furred creature staring at her.  _He would be a cute pet,_ Rita thought.  “Yes?”

“How are you feeling?”  Finster held his hands together in front of him but did not move from the doorway.

“Good,” Rita replied, “Very good.”  She looked down and stood up, turning toward him.  “It’s almost time to send a soldier.  I want to gauge where those power brats are.”

“Yes, my mistress.”  Rita walked toward him, and he moved to let her pass and like a faithful servant, he followed.  “I have a surprise for you, my mistress.”

That made Rita stop in her tracks.  With a sharp, wicked smile she turned to Finster with a maniacal gleam in her eyes, “I love surprises.”

“Right this way, Mistress.”  Finster lead her down the short corridor to his lab.  It was a bit of a mess, but organized in its own way.  “Here,” he pointed to the work table.

It was her staff.  It was no longer golden except for the sharp tips that littered it.  In the place where her coin had resided was a ruby jewel.  Of course, it wasn’t an actual ruby, but it shined like one and contained some kind of dark energy.  “It’s beautiful,” she whispered.

“That is a Xalantan stone.  The dark energy in that is quite powerful and can be shot from here to Earth.”

Rita turned her head to Finster in shock, “How did you manage a Xalantan stone?  Xalanta was destroyed eons ago.”

Beneath Finster’s fur he smiled and one brow cocked up as his eyes gleamed behind his glasses, “Lord Zedd has much at his disposal.”

That much was true, Rita knew, but hearing this statement only made her more agitated.  “Then why does he want my help?  What is he planning?”  Now she was angry, and she took threatening steps towards Finster, holding up her staff as if she were readying herself to attack him.

Finster took some steps back, hints of fear showing in his eyes, “I promise you, Mistress, he only seeks a partner.  That is all.”

It was a lie, Rita was sure of it.  No one with that much power would ever want a partner much less view someone as an equal.  Still, Rita new she needed to play the game right, or else she’d lose her chance.  Perhaps she could use what Zedd has given her and when she destroys the rangers she could find a way to siphon the energy from their coins and use it with hers.  Well, once she finds her green coin.  “Very well,” she said, putting her staff down, “I accept this partnership.  I will destroy the power rangers and conquer Earth to obtain the zeo crystal.  Now, what faithful soldier do you have ready for me to bring to life?”

Letting out a small breath of relief, Finster straightened himself and proceeded to another work table.  “I watched your battle with the rangers and was quite intrigued by your putties.  I designed a soldier similar to them, except stronger.”  He opened a case and a sculpture of a creature was revealed. 

It looked like her putties but she could see it was designed to be itself, not made of debris as her putties were.  “I like this.”  Finster took the sculpture out and placed it inside a chamber and closed the doors.  “What is this?”

“This shall grant the creature life.  But it can only be activated by your staff.”  He pointed to a lit square that was off to the side. 

Rita knew what she had to do.  It was simple, shoot an energy beam to it and it would render the creature animated.  All Rita wanted was to have the power of life at her disposal, and in some fashion, she now did.  She lifted her staff and willed it to fire.  And it did, directly into the center of the square and the entire chamber lit up and steam poured from the top.  It made a loud noise that she hated and hissed at, but it was over in mere seconds.  Then the doors opened and a rock creature, a rock monster came out aggressively and nearly smashed Finster’s table.  It gave Rita so much joy to see a creature come to life because of her, and to be powerful and ready to kill.  She couldn’t ask for anything better.

\-----

The rangers had piled into Kimberly’s car and she drove them to the mines.  Billy, being the tallest, had the luxury of riding up front whereas poor Jason had gotten stuck between Zack and Trini.  The ride itself wasn’t bad or obnoxious and neither was the hike up.  She just didn’t feel like training.  Truthfully, she was a bit tired and wanted to go home and binge on Netflix and text a certain new kid that was too cute for his own good.  Well damn, here comes that blush.

“Penny for your thoughts?” Jason teased as he fell in step with Kimberly at the back of the group.

“Nothing, just a little tired.  Some big tests coming up and I’ve just been stressing about them a little,” she replied.  Jason only nodded then fell silent.  Kimberly felt a little bad.  She had felt something for Jason when they first became rangers.  There was some kind of spark between them and when she had confessed her sins to him, she wanted to kiss him but thought better of it.  She wanted to become a better person, not jump to the first set of arms that happened to be open.  Jason deserved better than to be some kind of security blanket.  She didn’t exactly know where they stood, but she knows they are friends first and that’s where they left off.  It was a comfortable place and she’s glad she could fit there.  She only hoped he viewed it the same.

The rest of the hike was short, and they were at the cliff to the entrance of the ship.  They all jumped in together and swam their way to the bottom- or top- whatever it was.  They had gotten better at landing, but sometimes they’d still stumble.  Well, not Kimberly as her cheerleader training kicked in right away and almost always landed on her feet now.  If not her feet, she was able to roll correctly as to not hurt herself too much.  Trini was actually pretty good at that herself, but yoga would prepare one for that.

They made their way through the cave when Trini stepped next to Kimberly.  “So,” she said.

Kimberly looked at her questioningly, “So?”

“You and Tommy seemed to talk quite a bit today.”

Kimberly couldn’t stop the blush from creeping onto her cheeks.  She was thankful it was dark inside the cave.  “And?  You and Tamsin were pretty chummy yourselves.”  The noise that came out of Trini was short, almost sounding like a puppy trying to growl, and Kimberly made sure to place it in her memory bank that she may bring it up and tease Trini about it.  “Oh my God, what the hell was that noise?”

“Shut up, Gibbler,” Trini mumbled.

Kimberly closed her eyes and smirked.  “Did you happen to get Tamsin’s number?”

Although it was dark, and realistically Kimberly couldn’t see it, she was sure Trini blushed.  “No,” she replied.

“I got Tommy’s,” Kimberly bragged, feeling Trini glaring at her.  “If you want, I can ask him for Tamsin’s number for you.”  Trini didn’t say anything, but Kimberly could feel her struggle with her thoughts.  She figured she should step off the teasing now that she could feel how conflicted Trini was becoming.  “Look, it’s not a big deal.  I can get the number and you can text her or not.  Or just get it whenever you see her again.”

“I’ll think about it,” Trini murmured.

They got to the entrance of the ship and walked through the automated doors.  Once in the command center Alpha came running towards them, “POWER RANGERS!” he screamed, “We have trouble!”

“What is it?” Jason asked, stepping forward.

Zordon materialized on the wall, “It seems the threat of Rita is not over.”

“What do you mean?” Billy wondered, “I thought we slapped her into space?”

“That wasn’t enough to kill her.  I had hoped she’d be lost, floating in space forever but it seems fate is working in her favor.”

“How did this happen?” Trini asked, clenching her fists.  Kimberly looked at her, worried about her.  She knew that Trini suffered at Rita’s hands personally.  Both her and Billy.  Although Billy was mostly okay, as he was never shy about expressing his thoughts and feelings regarding his ordeal of dying, Kimberly knows that Trini had some, maybe still has issues with the aftermath and possibly even holds guilt that she was indirectly responsible for Billy’s death, no matter how temporary.  She knew her best friend, and her best friend was one to hold in her pain and take the weight of the guilt in silence.  Still, Kimberly couldn’t help but step towards her and place a reassuring hand on her shoulder.  Trini turned to her and smiled gratefully.

“We’re not sure.  The ship’s scanners have been finding various readings around the planet.  It did find a spike in energy levels on the moon specifically,” Zordon informed.

“Can’t those scanners see if there’s something there?  I mean, this is pretty sick tech,” Zack expressed.

“Normally, yes, but the ship hasn’t been running in 65 million years.  All systems are still updating,” Alpha explained.  Just then, he brought up a scene in the viewing globe, “Rangers, look!”  The scene they saw, they didn’t expect.  It was some creature resembling Rita’s putties, but it looked different.  More solid and powerful.  “Analysis shows that this is definitely an out of this world creature!  Its origins are unknown but, Zordon, the scanner is picking up Xalantan energy particles.”

“Xalantan?  How can that be?” Zordon asked rhetorically.

“I don’t know, sir, but I’m sure it’s Rita’s doing.”

“Yes, most definitely.  Rangers, you must get out there and destroy this… This monster before it destroys Angel Grove.”

“Got it!” Jason exclaimed, “Alright guys, it’s morphin’ time!”

\-----

Tommy and Tamsin had been walking through downtown Angel Grove right after detention.  As they walked, they lamented at how damaged the town still was from the battle of aliens that took place only two weeks ago.  Many people were still displaced, most of the shops were closed, buildings destroyed, and the marina near useless.  Efforts to rebuild the town were strong and, from what Tommy could see, the townspeople worked together; they had each other’s backs.  If one was a local that is. 

When they had moved there, because their father was offered a manager’s position at a name chain factory where plane engines were built, Powers Bros. Aviation, many towns folk were resentful that an outsider was granted a job when many qualified individuals who’d lived their lives in Angel Grove needed it.  Of course, it didn’t help that they were the only Native family in the small town and the ingrained racism towards Natives was still alive and well.  It made Tommy angry when he heard the whispers and saw the vandalism on his father’s truck.  It took all his will power to not do something stupid,especially that the truck was a gift from his late mother to his father.  That truck was special to them and he was ready to fight anyone who came across it.

But he held his anger in, sparred with his sister to release his anger and keep up their kick boxing skills.  It helped them both really.  Things were hard for Tamsin as well and he wished he could do more for her, but she put it upon herself to bare the weight of the void left by their mother’s death.  He told her time and time again that she didn’t have to be alone in it, but she would only smile and say, “I know.” 

“Hey,” Tamsin suddenly said, “What’s that?”

Tommy looked up and saw something strange in the middle of the street.  It looked like some kind of weirdly formed rock formation, but almost anthropomorphic, which should be impossible.  But not as impossible as it being bipedal and moving.  “What the hell?  C’mon!”  He grabbed Tamsin’s arm and pulled them back just as this rock creature let out some sort of scream and pounded at the ground, causing a ripple that reached them and made them falter, nearly falling.  “We’ve gotta get out of here!”

They ran as the ground shook more and the few people that were out began to scream and run in all directions as the rock creature began to break pieces of the pavement and threw them through the air.  One piece landed on a car just as someone was about to enter it.  Two cars crashed in front of Tommy and Tamsin blocking their route.  They ran and hid behind a bench.

Suddenly a group of five colorful individuals flew through the air and landed in front of the creature.

“It’s the power rangers!” someone yelled in relief.

“Whoa, what the hell is that?!” the black ranger exclaimed.

The creature responded by shrieking again and threw more pieces of pavement as the rangers ran at it.

“An unhappy camper,” Yellow said, jumping over the creature, trying to land a kick in before being thrown back.

“This rock thing, it’s like a putty but stronger right?  So, it would be like a rock star wouldn’t it?” Blue joked as he- or she- circled it and ran to Yellow.

“That’s not a bad code name, Blue,” Pink grunted as a rock hit her, or him.

A sword-like light blue light came out of Red’s hand.  “Time to get this show on the road.”

_Wow, that was kind of lame,_ Tommy thought, laughing in his head.

Red jumped up, using Black to catapult him or her up into the air but Rock Star caught Red and threw them to the side right into Blue and Yellow.

“That’s it,” Black growled, “This is getting stupid!”  Black put their hands together and a black and yellow light shined and formed what looked like an axe.

“I got your back, Black!” Pink shouted, “Hey, that rhymed, ha!” they added.  Then a pink and white light shined through their hand a looked as if they were about to shoot something like a bow and arrow.  That, Tommy thought, was pretty cool.

“I can’t believe we’re seeing this!” Tamsin gasped, tightening her hold on Tommy’s arm.

Black charged at Rock Star then took a step to the side as Pink shot an arrow made of what looked like lightning.  It hit Rock Star square in the chest and it faltered back and gave Black the opportunity they needed to strike Rock Star with their axe, successfully sending the creature flying back into a street light.

“Good job you guys!” Red shouted, “Blue… Yellow… NOW!”  Both Blue and Yellow were propelled by Red and in midair summoned their own weapons- which Tommy couldn’t quite see, only that they were blue and yellow sparks- and threw them at Rock Star which caused a small explosion on the monster, causing the ground to shake again as a street light fell over.

“We gotta get back,” Tommy said, “There’s too much debris flying around.”

“Yeah,” Tamsin agreed. 

Then they heard a cry for help.  Tommy and Tamsin looked at each other and he knew that she was thinking the same as him.  They had to find the source of the cry.

While the power rangers continued to fight Rock Star, slowly gaining the upper hand, Tommy and Tamsin ran into a shop that had broken windows and a giant rock at the door step.  “Help me!” shouted a small, innocent voice.

“We’re coming, just hang on!” Tommy shouted as he and Tamsin climbed over broken wood and glass, stepping through what once was a window display.  “Shit!” Tommy hissed as he pulled his hand away from the wall.  Blood began seeping out from a deep gash.

“That looks bad,” Tamsin said, as she held Tommy’s hand in hers before looking up at him, “Stay here.”  She moved forward entering the shop as the walls began to shake.  He grabbed a green handkerchief out of his pocket and wrapped his hand before turning back around.  He saw that the power rangers nearly had Rock Star defeated when the monster suddenly curled in on itself, shook, and exploded some kind of energy wave. 

The wave knocked all the rangers down and threw Tommy across the threshold of the shop and into the rock.  He struggled to breathe as the air was knocked out of him and the ceiling began to collapse.  _Shit,_ he thought, still struggling to breathe, _This place is gonna fall.  I’ve got to get up._ He struggled, but his chest hurt as he took in breaths without air. _Tamsin,_ he panicked and forced himself to his feet as dizziness clouded him. 

He stepped through the window display again, ready to fall inside to find his sister and the kid that was inside.  Then suddenly Tamsin appeared, blood falling from the side of her head, with a little girl in her arms.  “Here, take her,” she said, eyes fluttering, and mouth opened.  Tommy said nothing as he reached and grabbed the girl and stepped back outside, Tamsin right behind him. 

They made it about five feet before part of the ceiling caved in on that shop.  All three stared at the building that was now nothing but broken wood and cement.  The little girl in Tommy’s arms tightened her grip around his neck.  He placed his hand on her back reassuringly and whispered, “I got you.”  He turned to Tamsin and asked, “Are you okay?”

“Yeah,” she replied.  They ran back to their cover behind the bus bench.  “What do we do?”  Tamsin closed her eyes and took a deep breath.  She was obviously hurting from her head wound.

Tommy shook his head, “We just have to stay put until the power rangers stop that thing.” 

He looked up and saw the fight was still going.  The rangers had all grouped together and faced Rock Star.  “Okay guys,” Red announced, “Let’s bring ‘em together!”

“Right!” the rest shouted in unison.

All of their weapons became some kind of electrical energy bolt and they all threw them up into the air where it exploded and fell into Red’s hands.  It looked like a mini canon of sorts.  The other rangers formed behind Red and placed their hands on each other’s shoulders as they yelled in unison “Fire!” 

The blast it shot out was extremely bright; almost blinding.  Tommy turned his head away and covered the little girl and Tamsin as best as he could.  He heard the explosion and scream of Rock Star and then tiny bits of rock and other debris showered down over them.  It appeared that the power rangers had defeated this monster once he heard them cheering.

“Great job, guys,” Red said proudly.

“I can’t believe we did that without the zords!” Blue exclaimed, pumping his fist in the air.

“That was pretty dope,” Yellow added.

Both Tommy and Tamsin stood from their hiding spot, the little girl still holding onto Tommy tightly.

“Hey, guys,” Pink said then pointed to them.

Red stepped forward, “Are you all okay?”

Tommy swallowed then answered, “Yeah, we’re okay.”

“Good.  Sorry you got caught in the cross fire.  But good thing you stayed back.”

Other towns folk came out of buildings and from behind cars.  “Mommy!” the little girl yelled as a woman came running at Tommy.

“Emmy!”  She took the girl from Tommy’s arms, “Thank you for saving her.”

Tommy smiled shyly and said, “Not a problem, ma’am.”

“Oh my,” she said with concern looking at Tamsin, “You need to get that checked.”

For the first time, Tommy really looked at Tamsin’s head wound.  It was a pretty big gash and still hadn’t stopped bleeding.  It probably would need stitches, or at the very least, butterfly band aids.  “Oh damn.  Yeah, c’mon, Dadee.”  Tommy quickly shook the woman’s hand and pulled his sister towards the oncoming medics.  He turned one more time towards the power rangers as they waved at the town’s people before taking off.

\-----

It was quite the eventful day for Trini and when the others wanted to do a bond fire, she almost declined because she wanted to go home but when Kim gave her those damned puppy dog eyes, Trini couldn’t say no.  So, there they were, sitting around the fire, Kim sitting next to Trini but Kim using her lap to put her feet up as they all sipped on beers.  She’d have to ask Zack how he keeps getting beer for them.

Billy now made sure to bring snacks for them and, since Zack lives the closest to the mine, leaves graham crackers, marshmallows, and chocolate at his trailer for s’mores.  Trini will forever be thankful for that.

“We did good today, guys,” Jason announced, “I’m proud of us.”

“Thanks, Dad,” Zack said, laughing.

“Yeah,” Trini quipped, “Thanks, _Boss Man!_ ”  She made sure to emphasize his nickname because she knew he hated it.  Jason blushed and turned away smiling.

“I didn’t think combining our weapons was gonna work, but I’m sure glad they did.  It was like a ‘power blaster’ yeah?” Billy asked, excitedly.

“Nice one, Billy!” Jason shouted and clapped his hands.

“Yeah, man,” Zack said, “You’re our official, uh, code name provider?”  Zack laughed, “Whatever, you know what I mean.”

The group laughed and chatted about things that didn’t matter, and it was nice and light.  Then she felt her phone vibrate in her back pocket.  She pulled it out and saw a text from a number she didn’t recognize:

**_1+575-364-1555 (7:48 pm):_ ** _Is this Trini?  It’s Tamsin from detention.  Hope it’s okay but I got your number from my brother_

**_1+575-364-1555 (7:48 pm):_** _Which he got from your friend Kimberly_

**_1+575-364-1555 (7:49 pm):_ ** _And I just realized I might have gotten her in trouble so maybe just ignore me blowing up your phone_

Trini threw Kim’s feet off her lap and turned to her supposed best friend.  “You gave Tommy my number?!” she snarled.  Kim’s face was text book deer-caught-in-headlights look and it was so comical that Trini almost laughed right then and there.

“Um,” Kim paused and gulped, “Yeah?”

“Why?” Trini demanded.  She had half a mind to get up and leave.

“Because he said Tamsin wanted it and that she was being shy about it.”

_She was being shy about it?_ Trini thought to herself.  If that were the case, then that would mean that Tamsin might want to talk to her in the same fashion that Trini wants to talk to her.  She supposes she couldn’t be too mad at Kim, but she couldn’t let her best friend get away with this.  After all, it was an invasion of privacy.  Well, that was a bit of a stretch, but Trini was willing to make it.  “Okay,” she finally said, “Fine.”  She didn’t want Kim to know she was actually kind of excited she could talk to Tamsin now.  “But that wasn’t cool you gave some random my number.  I expect coffee for the rest of our detentions together.”

“Deal,” Kim conceded. 

Trini leaned back in her chair and Kim put her feet back up on her lap.  She brought her phone up and opened her messages again and added Tamsin to her contacts and began a reply:

**_ Tamsin the Valkyrie  _ **

**_You (7:52 pm):_ ** _Hey, sorry.  Yeah, it’s totally fine._

**_Tamsin the Valkyrie (7:53 pm):_ ** _Ok cool. I was just a lil nervous. Didn’t want Kimberly to get in trouble with you lol but also wanted to make sure you were ok._

**_Tamsin the Valkyrie (7:53 pm):_ ** _There was some alien attack in downtown AG today._

**_You (7:53 pm):_ ** _Oh no, she’s still in trouble.  She owes me coffee forever now.  And yes, I’m okay.  I wasn’t there I was actually hiking at the time._

It wasn’t completely a lie.  She was hiking part of the time.

**_Tamsin the Valkyrie (7:54 pm):_ ** _Lol @ Kimberly owing you coffee forever and I’m glad you’re okay._

**_Tamsin the Valkyrie (7:54 pm):_ ** _So you’re a coffee lover?_

**_You (7:54 pm):_ ** _Guilty._

**_Tamsin the Valkyrie (7:54 pm):_ ** _Me too._

**_Tamsin the Valkyrie (7:55 pm):_ ** _Would you maybe want to get coffee together sometime???_

Trini stared at her phone, doe eyed.  How was she supposed to answer that?  What did it mean?  Did it mean what she thought it meant?  _Oh god, oh god, oh god,_ she internally panicked.  “Kim!” she hissed, holding up her phone, “What does this mean?!”  Trini tried to keep her voice low as she didn’t want the boys, specifically Zack, to overhear her.

Kim took her phone and read the texts and smiled, “Dude, I think she asked you on a date.”  She handed Trini back her phone.

“What do I say?” Trini demanded.

“Do you want to go on a date with her?”

Did she?  Was she ready to go on a date again?  Even though she did have small, non-sexually explicit encounters with a couple of girls this past year, none actually made her flabbergasted as Tamsin was doing.  Then she thought of her parents.  She hadn’t exactly come out, but her parents knew, as made obvious by her mother this morning.  She really didn’t want them meddling in her life, not right now.  But did she want to go on a date with Tamsin?  Yes.  The answer was definitely a yes.  “I guess,” she replied, trying to be nonchalant.

“Then freakin’ text her, dummy!”

**_ Tamsin the Valkyrie +  You _ **

**_You (7:57 pm):_ ** _Yeah.  That’d be nice._

**_Tamsin the Valkyrie (7:58 pm):_ ** _Cool.  Maybe tomorrow?_

**_You (7:58 pm):_ ** _Sounds good._

Trini couldn’t help but feel giddy.

\-----

“HOW COULD THIS HAVE HAPPENED?!” Rita screamed, pounding her fist on one of the ship’s control panels on the bridge.  She turned to Finster, murder in her eyes, “How?” she asked lowly.

Finster trembled as he stepped back.  “I don’t know my mistress.  Perhaps the rangers were more powerful than we thought?”

“More powerful than _you_ thought,” Rita said through clenched teeth.  “We need another strategy.”  Then a nearby monitor beeped.  “What is that?”

“An energy reading, Mistress,” Finster answered, walking to the monitor.  He pressed a few buttons on the controls and graphs came up.  Things Rita couldn’t read.  “It appears there is left over Xalantan energy from our rock monster.  The rangers destroyed it near the zeo crystal and it was able to siphon a very small bit of the crystal’s energy before dissipating.”  He brought up another graph.  “Here are readings of unknown origins.”

“That’s Goldar!” Rita exclaimed happily.

“Well it appears the Xalantan energy and the goldar dust is mixing.  I’m not sure what will become of it.”

“Knowing Xalanta, it’ll be a beautiful combination.”

_To be continued..._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Angel Grove in the original series was set in Southern California, probably near Los Angeles as where the majority of the filming took place. For the sake of the reboot movie, Angel Grove in this fic will be slightly further north towards Ventura county where dairy farms are and still close to the coast where commercial fishing occurs. There will be words from the Jicarilla Apache language. Shi Dadee (pronounced da-deh) means my sister, shi na’áá means my brother, shish dazha means younger brother/sister, dade' (near same pronunciation as dadee only with a shorter ending) means older sister, máá means mother, ka'éé means father. There's a wonderful little app made by the Jicarilla Apache tribe available for free where you can learn more words and a bit of the tribe's culture and history. Check it out!


	4. Expert Level: Pro

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kim and Trini get to know the new kids while another old enemy makes its ugly face.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Notes: Papa Oliver’s name is Glenn Oliver and face cast is Michael Spears. Mama Oliver was named Beatriz Oliver and face cast is Tonantzín Carmelo.  
> Full disclaimer… No animals were harmed in the writing of this fic.

Expert Level: Pro

The Goldar Dust glowed with the red energy of the Xalantan stone.  Since Goldar’s destruction, the left over “dust” reanimated Rita’s putties but they were taken care of quickly by the power rangers.  Then the dust was weak, letting its energy drain because it no longer had a master or a purpose.  But then the red energy of the Xalantan stone gave it a purpose.  It had a surge in power and needed a vessel.

Traveling in liquid form, glowing red with golden hues, the Goldar Dust made its way all around Angel Grove, but the town was too damaged and nothing strong enough to hold it could be found.  So, it went further out, towards the mountains.  It passed people and cars but they were either too quick or not strong enough to be of use.  Perhaps there would be something in the mountains that the Goldar Dust could use.

After what seemed like an eternity, the Goldar Dust made its way to the base of the mountain and moved forward.  Crossing its path, a badger crawled out of its burrow.  The Goldar Dust observed it and regarded it as a strong and aggressive creature.  Yes, this specimen would do well to be its vessel.  Slowly the Goldar Dust moved forward and began to glow a pale flicker of red. 

The glow attracted the attention of the badger and the animal walked towards the Goldar Dust.  Just as the badger touched it with its nose, the Goldar Dust grabbed the badger and began to devour it.  The badger screeched and bit at the Goldar Dust and tried in vain to scratch at it.  The badger tried to fight it, it fought with all its might but it was futile and soon the badger was almost fully consumed by the Goldar Dust, only it’s face and snout visible. 

It wasn’t long before the badger stopped hissing and moving and the Goldar Dust began to form its humanoid body.  The hands were the first to form and it moved downward shaping the torso then finally the legs.  Eventually the Goldar Dust became a new Goldar with the help of the badger.

His eyes shined red as he growled and clenched his fists as he rose to his feet.  It was exactly like born again as Goldar took his first step and wavered.  He caught himself on a boulder and used his other hand to cover his eyes.  The world around him looked different and he could only think it was the cause of the badger’s natural night vision.

Goldar felt a pinch at his hand and found a scorpion trying desperately to sting him as his hand was partially on top of it.  Of course, the stinging of the tail did little to Goldar.  He picked up the arachnid and studied it; it was a feisty creature with natural weapons.  Goldar turned to his side and found some remaining goldar dust. 

Perhaps it was enough to create another creature to help him in his mission.  He tossed the scorpion into the remaining goldar dust and watched as it devoured the scorpion and began to form.

\-----

Kimberly wasn’t one to be giddy and nervous, especially not over a boy, or girl for that matter, but for some reason Tommy gave her butterflies in a way no other person did.  Not Ty Flemming, not Amanda Clark- truthfully, everything that had had happened with her was more experimentation and clarification than anything romantic-, and not Jason.  Yet, here she was, holding her cell phone, obsessively staring at the screen waiting for a text, as she laid on her back on her bed.  Then there was a beep.  Speaking of the long hair devil.

**_ Tommy O + You _ **

**_Tommy O (9:03 am):_ ** _Hey you_

**_You (9:03 am):_ ** _hi_

She scrunched her face at her text.  It wasn’t her finest nor wittiest response she could’ve mustered.

**_Tommy O (9:03 am):_ ** _Do you like batting cages?_

Again, she scrunched her face.  It wasn’t that she didn’t like sports, she just didn’t want that to be what they did the first time hanging out.  Or first date, whatever this would be.

**_You (9:04 am):_ ** _I’ve been a few times. it’s cathartic_

**_Tommy O (9:04 am):_ ** _I agree but don’t worry that’s not what we’re doing.  Least not today lol_

Kimberly couldn’t help the sigh of relief that escaped her lips.

**_You (9:04 am):_ ** _ok then what r we doing wise guy?_

**_Tommy O (9:04 am):_ ** _That’s a surprise._

**_Tommy O (9:04 am):_ ** _But when I pick you up I’m gonna have my sister with me.  We share a car and I’m going to drop her off at the starbucks. She’s having a coffee date with your friend._

**_You (9:05 am):_ ** _ya Trini told me about it. What did u guys fight for the car?_

**_Tommy O (9:05 am):_ ** _Maybe *wink emoji*_

**_You (9:05 am):_ ** _lol ur dumb._

**_You (9:05am):_ ** _but that’s ok since ur cute… what time should I expect you?_

Kimberly blushed.  She couldn’t believe she sent that.

**_Tommy O (9:06 am):_ ** _Yeah but I’m a cute dumb *screaming emoji*_

**_Tommy O (9:07 am):_ ** _Is 11:00 okay?_

**_You (9:07 am):_ ** _I’ll be ready_

Unable to help the blush nor the giggles that escaped her, Kimberly put her phone down and grabbed her pillow and hugged it while burying her face.

Before long, Kimberly got ready but didn’t want to put too much effort into dressing up, keeping it casual since she wasn’t sure what to expect of this mid-day date.  She wore her black biker-esque boots, black ripped skinny pants, a dark rose tank top, and her black jacket.  She almost laughed at herself at all the black she was wearing and wondered why the black power coin didn’t choose her.  Then actually laughed out loud imagining Zack as the pink ranger.

Then there was a knock at the front door.  _Interesting,_ she thinks to herself.  Tommy had deciding on coming up to her door and knocking rather than texting he was there.  Something that Ty would do, even on their first date.  “Dad!” she calls out, “I’m going out for a while!”

“Not too late!” he calls back.

Rolling her eyes in an amused fashion, the corner of Kimberly’s lips curled as she shouted back, “I won’t!”  She grabbed her phone and her keys then opened the door to find Tommy leaning against the railing of the porch, his back to the door, looking out to the street.  He turned around and formed a shy smile.  His hair was in a ponytail and he wore jeans, a black shirt with a weird logo, and an olive-green bomber jacket.  “Hey,” Kimberly nearly whispered.

“Hey yourself,” Tommy replied, “You look badass.”

Kimberly let out a small, embarrassed laugh and said, “Thanks,” before closing and locking the door.  They began to walk off the porch.  “The jeep is yours?”  She pointed to a slightly older, black with a brown rag top Jeep wrangler.

“Yep.  Well, I share it with my sister.  Parents got it for us because we’re amazing kids.”

That caused Kimberly to giggle as she tried to imagine the Oliver twins as studious children when they were both in detention for fighting.  She’s only known him a day, but could already see his humor.  It was really cute and made Kimberly nervous in a way she didn’t think possible.  She then playfully smacked him on the shoulder.

They reached the car and she made sure to grab the door handle before he could open it for her.  It wasn’t that Kimberly didn’t want him to be polite, she just didn’t want to seem like a damsel who needed every door opened for her or her seat pulled out for her.  Sometimes she just wanted to open her own door. She opened the door and saw Tamsin waving at her from the back seat.  “Hi,” she greeted.

“Hey, Kim,” she greeted back.

“Did you want the front?  Since you’re getting dropped off first, right?”

“Nope, I’m good.  I want to be an observer to the mess that is Tomas.”  A smug smile grew on Tamsin’s face.

Kimberly nodded, unable to resist smiling herself. 

Tommy opened the driver’s side door and got in and paused before looking at both Kimberly and Tamsin.  “What?” he asked.

“Nothing,” the girls replied in unison.

Tommy slightly blushed then turned on the ignition.  “Oh, Kim?  You know how to get to the Starbucks on Reefside yeah?”

“Yeah, I’ll direct you.”

And they drove off to drop off Tamsin for her coffee date with Trini.  Then Kimberly would be on her own afternoon date with Tommy.

\-----

The walk to Starbucks gave Trini time to calm her nerves.  She was always someone who prided herself in making it look like she was put together on the outside, despite falling apart on the inside.  Even in the morning, she took her time to find clothes that were casual, but well put together.  She settled on fitted blue jeans that weren't ripped, her black shirt with a white flower, and her gold bomber jacket.  She wore her clothes like armor and her mask hardly ever wavered in public.  But right now, so many scenarios were playing out in her head.  Would Tamsin realize what a weirdo she was then say, "Never mind," and up and leave?  Would Tamsin even show up?  And why was she acting like this when she barely met the girl yesterday?  Because, she realized, there was something about her that Trini was attracted to.  Not in a lustful way- though Tamsin was hot, but that was beside the point- but rather more of a wanting-to-get-to-know-her way.  She couldn't quite put her finger on it, but she very much wanted to be around Tamsin.

When she finally made it to Starbucks, Trini decided to wait outside.  She sat at a table under an umbrella, and played on her phone.  Then a black jeep drove up and stopped in front of her.  She instantly recognized Kim in the passenger seat and smiled at her.  Kim smiled back with teeth shining brightly as she got out and moved the seat forward for Tamsin to get out.  Trini got up and walked to her friend and gave Kim a hug.

"These two are so funny," Kim whispered in her ear.

Trini said nothing but couldn't help the crooked smile that formed on her face.  She turned from Kim and waved at Tommy, who smiled and waved back from inside the car.  Then she turned to Tamsin and said "Hey."

"Hey yourself," Tamsin replied.

"Okay, well, I'm gonna go now.  Have fun!" Kim said excitedly as she got back inside the jeep.

"You too," Trini called back.  Then they drove off.  "So, hey," Trini repeated and took in Tamsin.  Her hair was straight and down and long.  Probably half way down her back, definitely longer than her brother's.  She wore black combat boots, grey blue jeans, a grey shirt with maroon outlines, and a brown suede jacket that looked like it had an internal layer of a black hoodie inside.

"Hey again."

Then she noticed the butterfly bandages on Tamsin’s forehead, which also had some bruising.  That must’ve been from yesterday during the fight with Rockstar.  Trini felt horrible that she was indirectly responsible for that.  She decided to bring it up to Jason about fighting aliens and monsters when there’s people around.  “You okay?” she asked out of curtesy, motioning towards Tamsin’s head.

“Hmm?” Tamsin paused, then brought her hand to her head, “Oh yeah, this.  Yeah, I’m okay.  That fight the power rangers had with that monster?  There was some damage to a building I was in and I got hit by a falling piece of drywall.  But I’m okay.”

“You sure?”

“Yeah.”

“Okay,” Trini conceded.  She didn’t want to push the subject as this was only the second day they’ve known each other.  "So, um, wanna get some coffee?"  Trini put out her arm towards the entrance.

"Yeah, sure."  They began to walk to the entrance and Tamsin grabbed the door and held it open for her.  "Oh, and it's my treat."

They both ordered a medium coffee, Trini a little surprised when Tamsin ordered hers with soy milk.  Apparently, Tamsin wasn't lactose intolerant but rather she was lactose sensitive.  Trini liked her coffee black with a packet of splenda on most days.  Tamsin had also ordered a pastry for each of them and then sat outside.

"So, what's it like being the older sister of twin boys?" Tamsin asked, taking a bite of her marble cake.

Trini let out a huff and rolled her eyes, "Oh man, it's annoying.  Sometimes they get into these fights over who gets what and my parents have to get something small but one for each of them.  And it's kind of funny, but they take turns trapping each other under laundry baskets while the other sits on it."

Tamsin laughed, "That's so funny.  Tommy and I used to do things like that to each other.  One time, I think we were, maybe 10 or 11, he used to be so neurotic about his colored pens, and I changed the ink.  Like, I put the black ink in the red pen and the blue in the black, and he was so upset.  He eventually got me back though by taking the cream out of my oreo cookies and replacing it with tooth paste."

"Eww, but hilarious."  Trini giggled and shook her head.  "I think I'm gonna have to do that to my friend Zack on day."

"Yeah, it was pretty gross."  Tamsin paused to take a sip of her coffee.  "Are you in any sports at school?"

Trini shook her head while taking a bite of her chocolate croissant, "God no."

"Not an athlete?" Tamsin asked quizzically.

"No, just didn't like the girls on the soccer team.  Or, actually, they didn't like me.  Besides, I do yoga and tai chi so I wouldn't have time for sports anyways."  Trini took a sip from her coffee.

"That's cool.  Did you ever compete in tai chi?"

"Thought about it, but no.  If you start to compete in something you love, it loses its fun."

"That's true.  I'm glad I never competed in figure skating, even though I was kind of good at it."  Tamsin broke off a small piece of her cake and dipped it in her coffee before putting it in her mouth.

"You were?  Even though you weren't close to a rink?"

Tamsin nodded.  "Every few weeks we'd go visit family on the Ute Reservation and they had an ice rink so my máá (mother) would take me and my cousin every time."  She smiled sadly at the memory and looked away.  "I really miss that.  Last time we went was three years ago before my mom got sick."  Tamsin's eyes got glossy and a tear fell down her cheek.  She wiped it away quickly.  "Ugh, I'm sorry.  I didn't mean..."

Trini shook her head and reached out, placing a tentative hand on Tamsin's.  "Don't be sorry.  I'm sorry I brought it up."

"No, it's okay.  I don’t talk about it too much, but when I do, the memories just hit me, ya know?"

Trini nodded.  "Yeah.  I feel that way about my abuelita.  Grandmother."  Tamsin looked at her expectantly.  "She died when I was seven, a couple months before we moved from Hawai'i to Oregon."

"Ah, that must've been a drastic change for you.  Especially being seven."

"Yeah.  That and no one bothered to explain to me what it meant to die.  I didn't realize my abuelita wasn't coming back until she didn't and I was older."  Trini paused and closed her eyes, leaning back into her chair.  "I always felt so loved with my abuelita.  I mean, my parents are great, but when I was little, my dad was always working on base and my mom is an ER, and OR, nurse so her hours were 12 hours shifts and she did a lot of over time.  My abuelita was my whole world.  And then, she was gone."  Now it was Trini's turn for her eyes to sting and water.  She rubbed them before her tears could fall.  "Sorry."

“Don’t be.”  Tamsin couldn't help but let out a small giggle, "We're quite the pair huh?  Supposed to be having a coffee date and here we are telling sad stories and making ourselves cry."

Trini rolled her eyes and nodded in agreement before taking another sip of her coffee, "Anyways, enough sad talk."

"Agreed."  They both paused, Tamsin finishing her cake.  "How's the beaches here?  I haven't gotten a chance to see them."

"The water is cold, but the sand is smooth.  The pier was destroyed during that weird alien-robot attack, but the beaches are mostly open.  Did you want to go down there?  We're only a few blocks."

"Really?  I've actually never seen the ocean before."

"Well then let's go."  Trini rose from her seat, ate the last of her croissant and grabbed her bomber from the back of the chair.  Tamsin doing the same.  

They began to walk, both holding their coffees, side by side, arms barely brushing against one another.

\---

Turns out, Tommy took them to a carnival that was taking place at California State University Channel Islands, which wasn't too far from Angel Grove.  It was maybe about a 35 minute drive without traffic.  They hadn't been there more than two hours and Kimberly had enjoyed herself a giant pretzel with a pink lemonade while Tommy had a limeade slushie and a hotdog.  They both enjoyed driving the bumper cars, Kimberly having a bit too much fun bumping into Tommy every chance she got.  They had ridden a few rides and played some games.  Tommy had an arm for throwing the sand sack at a stack of wooden pegs to knock them over and won a stuffed dinosaur for Kimberly.  She picked the cartoon eyed purple pterodactyl.  Then she herself showed pretty good accuracy in shooting targets with cork guns, winning a small cartoony stuffed green dragon and then giving it to Tommy.  

They had talked about their interests and Tommy shared he loved playing lacrosse and Kimberly learned that it was actually a sport that originated with Native Americans, specifically the northern tribes, but many plains tribes played it too.  Kimberly told him she used to be in gymnastics when she was a kid, but then grew too tall to compete the way she wanted so she took her talents to cheerleading.  He was a little shocked at that information as he didn't know any cheerleaders who "looked like bikers."  It made her laugh and she had smacked him on the shoulder.  He had asked why she wasn't a cheerleader anymore.  All she mentioned was that there had been issues with other girls, she did something bad and decided she needed to figure out what kind of person she was.  Kimberly was thankful that Tommy left it at that.  

They talked about their family lives.  Kimberly telling him she was biracial, half white- some mix of British and Irish and possibly Scottish ancestry- on her father's side and half Gujarati Indian on her mother's side.  She told him that she could speak Gujarati, not perfectly fluent, but could communicate pretty decently.  The problem was that the Indian population in Angel Grove was very small, and the Gujarati Indians were even smaller so really, the only practice in the language was with her mother and the occasional phone conversations with her grandmother.  Tommy told her about his family, that he never met his paternal grandparents and only knew his maternal grandmother.  She was still living, but suffering with dementia and didn't recognize anyone except his aunt.  He also told her that he and Tamsin were pretty fluent in Jicarilla Apache and informed her about the different tribes that share the Apache name, but all had different cultures and languages.  

Then they both talked about the casual racism they've faced.  Some of Kimberly's family on her father's side, older aunts and uncles and long distant cousins, were not happy when her father married her mother.  Even in town, there were people who whispered about not wanting to be seen by Dr. Joshi-Hart because "she probably doesn't speak English."  Thankfully, those horrible whispers were few and far between as most of the town loved Dr. Joshi-Hart, who was an excellent general physician.  Kimberly told Tommy that her father was a successful employment law lawyer who always made sure workers weren't taken advantage of by greedy companies.  While Tommy's mother had been a school teacher before her passing- Kimberly learned she had passed away from cancer, and she saw the heartbreak in Tommy's eyes when he spoke of it, though didn’t say much as there was a belief that speaking of the dead doesn’t allow them to rest- while his father was a respected mechanic in New Mexico and moved to work on big rig commercial engines to small airplanes.  Eventually Powers Brothers Aviation, a company that built airplane engines, reached out to him to hire him as a floor manager, which didn't sit well with the more blue collared workers of Angel Grove.  Having an outsider come work when there were many qualified mechanics actually from Angel Grove who could have easily gotten the job.  Then Tommy mentioned that his father recently left the factory to find his truck vandalized.  That information didn't sit well with Kimberly.

Now they were in line for the ferris wheel and Tommy just finished his slushie and tossed the cup in a nearby trash can.  Kimberly was having a great time.  "How'd you know there was a carnival happening here today?" she asked as she put her hands in the pockets of her pants.

Tommy moved a loose strand of hair from his face.  "I was looking at colleges nearby and found this one.  They have a good Anthropology department."

"Oh, you're interested in Anthro?"

"Yeah a bit.  What about you?"

"No idea.  I figure I still have senior year to freak out about it."

Tommy laughed and nodded his head, “Can’t argue that, Princess.”  Kimberly blushed at the term of endearment. 

"Next couple step up please!" the ride attendant shouted.

Kimberly and Tommy stepped up together and Kimberly sat in the seat first.  Once they were both in, the attendant locked them in and the wheel moved for the next people.  They were both silent, enjoying the view as they were lifted higher and higher.  Finally, they were at the top and Tommy made whispered "Wow."

"Never been this high up before?" Kimberly asked.

"No."

"You've never been on a plane before?"

Tommy shook his head and replied, "No," without moving his eyes.  "You can barely see the ocean!  Then the mountains over there!"  

Kimberly couldn't help the smile that grew on her face at Tommy's excitement.  Then she felt a little sad.  These were small experiences that she took for granted and here was this boy whom she'd known for a day, a boy she's really growing to enjoy being around, and he hadn't even had the small experience of flying on a plane.  "You know," Kimberly started, "My uncle does plane tours to Channel Islands and Point Mugu.  If you wanted, we can go on a tour with him."

"Really?"

"Totally!  It'll be fun."

"That sounds amazing," Tommy said, smiling brightly, staring deep into Kimberly's eyes.

She couldn't help but return the stare, swallowing the lump building in her throat.  Slowly she reached out and touched his hand and smiled when she felt him wrap his fingers around hers.  The ride moved and began to roll.  They both turned forward and laughed.  Kimberly scooted closer and leaned onto Tommy and wrapped an arm around his.

\--- 

"Looks like Goldar is back and in a new form.  I knew my friend would not fall so easily," Rita said as she looked on at the viewing screen of her ship, "And he's made a friend!"

"I'm working on a creature to assist them, Mistress," Finster said as he continued sculpting and grabbed a brush and coated his creation.

Rita walked up to his work table with interest, "What is this?"

The sculpture looked skeletal, almost humanoid, but not quite.  "A nasty creature who will certainly give the rangers a very hard time.  I also want to give him a weapon to displace the rangers in a time warp.  I have a proton spark that could give him the power."

Rita smiled and tightened her grip on her staff, "Excellent."

_To be continued..._


	5. Close Encounters of the Fourth Kind

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Life in Angel Grove is going smoothly for the Oliver twins until something unexpected occurs. One might say it's a close encounters of the fourth kind... Get it???

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Face cast for Angela is Laura Harrier.

Close Encounters of the Fourth Kind

 

_Three Weeks Later_

Over the course of the days that passed, Tommy and Tamsin made friends with Jason, Billy, and Zack.  Tommy and Jason talked sports quite a bit while Zack and Tommy spoke of hip hop and music.  Tommy introduced him to Native rappers that Zack had no idea existed.  Billy loved being able to speak tech to Tamsin, who, besides Trini, could understand his techno-speak.  Overall, they were all becoming friends and the rangers had to admit, it felt good to have normal, non-alien powered friends.  Most of the days they had lunch together either at the bleachers at the football field or a corner in the cafeteria.  On occasion, when Trini and Tamsin would hang out after school, Trini would show Tamsin some tai chi or yoga at her special spot on the mountain and Tamsin would show Trini some boxing combinations.  

 

The rangers kept their training at a couple times per week.  Zack was very appreciative as he had wanted to pick up extra shifts at the restaurant he bused tables at to earn more money for his mother's care.  He continued to do his daredevil videos on YouTube for extra money, but he knew he couldn't do the insane videos people would've paid good money to see without raising suspicions.  Billy loved spending time at the ship studying its tech.  He and Alpha had been working on devices to communicate with each other and possibly for teleportation to bypass the water.  Also, a device to morph without being on the ship's bridge.  They were aware there was a way, but with these devices, or morphers as Billy was affectionately calling them, it’d make it so much easier.  Jason started spending time with his dad, learning about commercial fishing and just continuing to fix their relationship.  For Kimberly, the relationship with her parents stayed close to the same as her mother worked long hours and her father would bring his work home.  But they weren't being overbearing any longer and gave her a bit more space since her grades picked up, she wasn't getting into trouble, and volunteering to help paint the buildings downtown.  And Trini was just glad to be able to do her yoga in peace.  Sure, she was developing a new relationship with her parents, being able to speak more openly with them and them slowly but surely accepting the person she was growing into, but she missed her alone time.  Plus, she was so glad to be able to continue her tai chi training, despite having to keep her strength in check.

 

Thankfully there hadn't been any strange attacks since Rockstar, which the rangers were thankful for, but Zordon had said not to get too comfortable.  Knowing Rita, she was preparing something big. 

 

All the while, unknowingly to the rangers and Zordon, Rita had been able to communicate with Goldar and his newly created partner, Scorpina.  She was able to send them weapons and even allow them a few putties so they could plan their attack.  They were a scary force.  Goldar with his face of a rabid badger, canine teeth long and sticking out of his furred face with red eyes.  His hands clawed and strong, and a tail with hairs sticking out straight.  His weapon was a thick and heavy sword; very fitting for him.  Scorpina, however, was even more monstrous.  Her face was almost like an angler fish, but not.  And any skin that showed was black and shiny just like the exoskeleton of a scorpion and her hands were crossed between a scorpion's claws and a humanoid hand.  She also had a long, thin tail with a venomous stinger that she itched to use. Her weapon was different, almost like a big boomerang, but with sharp edges.  It worked as a sword but also to throw.  They were both ready, just waiting for Rita to give word.

 

\--- 

 

U.S. history was never really the most fun class for Trini, especially how history was always so white washed, and now Mr. Thompson wanted the class to pick out partners to do projects on specific events.  Thankfully Angela Williams had gone up to Trini and asked to be partners.  She was a smart girl who never dicked around in class and she was also always nice to Trini and other "unpopular" kids.  Maybe this project wouldn't suck so badly.

 

They were assigned to manifest destiny and Trini rolled her eyes.  She hated that topic.  When class was over, thankfully being the last class of the day, Angela walked with Trini to her locker to start some sort of plan.  

 

"We've got until next week for the presentation.  I'm thinking we should meet up tomorrow evening and start brainstorming?" Angela spoke as they reached Trini's locker.

 

"Yeah, that sounds good,” Trini replied as she opened her locker and began to rummage.

 

"I'm kind of thinking, maybe making a Then-And-Now map?"

 

Trini shrugged, "It's an idea."

 

"Hey, Crazy Girl!  How's it going?!" Zack exclaimed as he walked up to the girls, then stopped and turned red, "Oh, h-hey, Angela.  What's up?"  He smiled a crooked, goofy grin and straightened his shoulders.

 

"Hi, uh, Zack?  Right?" Angela sheepishly asked.

 

"Yeah, that's me, the Zackman!"  Zack's jaw tightened and he stiffened.

 

Trini groaned and rolled her eyes thinking how lame he sounded as she finished up gathering her things.  "So, anyways, Angela, here's my number.  Just send me a text if you get any ideas."  Trini handed her a ripped piece of paper.

 

"Got it, thanks."  Angela put the paper in her bag and turned to Zack, "See ya.  Bye, Trini."  Then she walked off.

 

"Jeez, Zack, you turned all kinds of red," Trini teased, lightly hitting Zack in the stomach.

 

"I mean, can you blame me?  Angela is so smart and beautiful and nice and has great fashion sense.  You feel me on that, right?"

 

Trini nodded, "Yeah, she is pretty hot."  Trini closed her locker and began walking, Zack right beside her, "Are we training today?"

 

"Yeah.  We're meeting at Kim's car."

 

\--- 

 

Except Kimberly wasn't there, not yet.  She was going to be a little late meeting with her friends because she was currently being extremely cliché and getting to know Tommy a little more, but without words, and down in the basement leveled floor that was cleared out, against the wall by the stairs.  Only, she had him pinned against the wall, her body against his while her fists were clenching his jacket while his hands laid at her waist, his lips the softest she'd ever kissed.  Even softer than Amanda Clark's and that's saying something.  His breath was also very minty, not tasting like Gatorade or soda like Ty Flemming's.  Also, unlike Ty- or every previous boyfriend she'd had- Tommy's hands weren't roaming.  He placed them on her waist and they stayed there.  Even when she moved her hands from his neck, to his chest, before clenching his jacket; his hands never moved.  They must've been making out for a while because Kimberly's phone was blowing up; she ignored it.  However, once Tommy's went off, they separated, but Kimberly didn't let go of his jacket or move herself off him.

 

"That's probably Tamsin," he said while reaching to his back pocket for his cell.

 

"She's waiting for you."

 

"Yeah, I'm keeping her waiting.  Just a bit."

 

"Just a bit?"  Kimberly teased, smiling brightly.

 

"Yeah, just a bit."  Tommy returned the smile then looked at his phone and it faltered a bit before he closed his eyes and blushed.  "Oh wow," he mumbled.

 

"What?"

 

"Nothing," he said quickly, hiding his phone.

 

"Did she say something bad?"  Kimberly was very curious.

 

"No," Tommy said, "She just made a crude joke."

 

"Really?!" Kimberly said excitedly, "Let me see!"  She reached for his phone, but he pulled back.  "C'mon," she begged.

 

Tommy laughed then said, "No, it's embarrassing."  He removed himself from her grip and tried to get away, all while laughing before he put his phone away.

 

"I can't even imagine Tamsin being crude," Kimberly mentioned, leaning against the wall with her arms crossed, an airy look on her face.

 

"Oh, she can be."

 

"Should be fun for Trini."  She paused when Tommy looked away, trying not to laugh.  "Anyways, I guess we should head out.  People are waiting for us."  She straightened up and slowly walked forward.  "We shouldn't keep them waiting.  It's rude."  A flirtatious smile appeared on her face and she kept walking forward.

 

"Very rude," Tommy all but whispered as he looked at Kimberly, dumbfounded.

 

Kimberly reached him and grabbed the collar of his shirt and pulled him down, bringing their lips together.  She took a deep breath and moved back.  "We shouldn't be rude.  C'mon."  Kimberly released her hold and began walking toward the stairs with Tommy following her.

 

Once out, they kissed one more time, promising to text later in the evening before parting ways.

 

\--- 

 

Training that evening was filled with the boys teasing the girls and Trini making a comment about Zack making a mess of himself in front of Angela.  They had gotten better at fighting the putties and using team work.  One of the boys launching one of the girls in the air to do an airstrike type attack was probably their favorite move.

 

"Okay, guys," Jason started, walking to stand in front of them, "Let's do some weapons training."

 

"Aw yeah!" Zack exclaimed.  He loved any reason to pull out his ax and use it, especially the secondary canon weapon.

 

More simulated putties formed and each ranger paired off with a single putty.  Then the training began.  Jason had little issues at fight, but then he attempted to use his sword with his left arm and was thrown into a wall.  Zack easily sliced his putty in half, simply dodging a punch and then swinging his ax as if he were chopping at a tree.  Billy used his lance in its staff form and twirled it like a baton before taking out his putty.  Trini flipped over her putty, landing on its shoulders before stabbing it with her daggers in the neck.  Kimberly used her bow like a staff, pushing the putty back before sending three arrows into its chest.

 

"Well, that's the last time I use my left arm," Jason grumbled as he rolled his shoulder.  "Okay, two at a time!"

 

Training lasted another hour and a half.  It ended with minimal bruising to the rangers, especially since they trained with their armor.  After they disengaged their armor, their small wounds revealed.  Thankfully they weren't obvious nor alarming.  The group gathered their belongings, said their goodbyes to Zordon and Alpha, and made their way through the water before landing on the top of the cliff.

 

Trini rung out her hair and huffed, "I hate going through that water."

 

Zack nodded in agreement but said nothing.

 

"Oh, guys!" Billy exclaimed, "I forgot!  So, as you guys know, Alpha and I have been working on a device to help us bypass the water, right?  Like, teleport from our current location to the ship's bridge."  He paused and saw everyone either nod or stare expectantly at him.  He continued, "So yeah, it's just about done.  We just gotta run a few more tests and it should be good to go!  Oh!  And best part?  We'll be able to communicate through it!"

 

"Communicate?  Like a phone?  That's the best part?" Zack teased.

 

"Oh, right, heh."

 

"This is great news, Billy," Jason said, putting a tentative hand on Billy's shoulder, "Can't wait to see the finished product."

 

They continued to chat as they made their way down the mountain before Kimberly slowed down to walk with Trini, who was busy on texting.

 

"Texting someone important?" Kimberly teased.  Trini smirked before sending a last text and putting her phone in the pocket of her jacket.  "So, I have this dumb idea," Kim started, "Tommy really wanted to go bowling and I remember how you mentioned Tamsin loved ice skating so I was thinking we should do, like, a double date over at Pickwick?"  


Trini raised her eye brow, "A double date?  Hm, you're right.  That is a dumb idea."  


"Oh, c'mon," Kimberly whined, grabbing onto Trini's sleeve, "It'll be fun.  Me and Tommy against you and Tamsin.  Or, you and I against them?"

 

"How about me and Tommy against you and Tamsin?"  Kimberly gave her a pointed look.  A groan then escaped Trini's mouth, "Fine.  When is this happening?"  


"Friday."

 

\--- 

 

The week flew by and it was Friday, last period of the day, bell about to ring.  Thankfully for Trini, Angela and she were already more halfway through their project.  They went with Angela's before-and-after map idea, which Trini designed and colored then they found a segment by PBS about the annexation of the south west to the United States.  They took out specific points from the video to show to the class and made a power point.  The way it was going, Trini wouldn't have to worry about this project during the weekend which made her happy as it gave her time to think about how to talk to Tamsin about going to the fall masquerade dance.  

  


It wasn't that Trini wanted to really go to the dance- she hated school dances- but she had never had a group of friends to go together with, let alone a girlfriend.   _If she even is,_ Trini thought to herself,  _Don't jump to conclusions._ That was another topic she needed to speak to Tamsin about, but she wasn't very good at speaking about these things.  Any past girl experience was just that; an experience.  There was only one girl whom she liked that liked her back that she might've considered a girlfriend.  They weren't out, but they were 14 and they'd hold each other's hands in the dark and kiss when the lights went out.  Unfortunately, it ended when her mother walked in on them holding each other while sleeping, and her dad having to be transferred which resulted in them having to move yet again.  

 

Trini shook her head at the thoughts.  She didn't want to dwell on the past.  She was happy in the present, she had great friends, a possible- most likely- girlfriend, an improving relationship with her parents, and she was a superhero.  There wasn't much more she could ask for.  She just needed to know how to approach Tamsin on the subject and there was only one person she could ask that about.  She grabbed her cell and opened up the messages.

 

**_ Kimmy Gibbler _ **

 

**_You (2:55 pm):_ ** _Hey Gibbler, I really need to talk to you about something_

 

**_Kimmy Gibbler (2:55 pm):_ ** _whats up?_

 

**_You (2:56 pm):_ ** _How do you ask someone if it's okay to make things official?_

 

**_Kimmy Gibbler (2:56 pm):_ ** _official?_

 

Trini rolled her eyes and groaned.

 

**_You (2:56 pm):_ ** _Yes.  Like dating?_

 

**_Kimmy Gibbler (2:57 pm):_ ** _oh... well talk to her i guess? i mean tommy and i haven't really talked about it yet either... just kinda testing the waters._

 

**_You (2:57 pm):_ ** _Kimmy... You've already been sucking face with him.  Tamsin and I haven't even kissed._

 

**_Kimmy Gibbler (2:58 pm):_ ** _ok thats rude..._

 

**_Kimmy Gibbler (2:58 pm):_ ** _look, just talk to her tonight when we're ice skating. you want to be her gf right?_

 

**_You (2:59 pm):_ ** _Yes._

 

**_Kimmy Gibbler (2:59 pm):_ ** _then just tell her that.  thats what im gonna do with tommy tonight because... im actually really liking him._

 

**_You (2:59 pm):_ ** _Okay... Yeah, I really like Tamsin too._

 

**_Kimmy Gibbler (2:59 PM):_ ** _itll be ok.  ok?  great. cya in a few! *multi colored heart emojis*_

 

Trini smiled and put her phone away as the bell rang.  She gathered her things and headed out to meet Kim at her car.  Plan tonight: Get home, get ready, ice skate, then kick some ass at bowling and try to be suave and ask to make things official.  Should be easy, right?

 

\--- 

 

The excitement of going bowling grew in Tommy.  He hadn't bowled in almost two years and when Kimberly had mentioned bowling, he all but jumped in the air.  He wasn't as excited about the ice skating part but was happy for Tamsin because that was something she very much enjoyed and he noticed that since their mother passed away, Tamsin hadn't enjoyed much of anything.  But when Kimberly had suggested a double date ice skating, Tamsin's eyes brightened so much so Tommy made sure to agree to it.  The bowling was just the cherry on top for the night.

 

The plan was for them to meet at Pickwick and they'd eat pizza there then ice skate followed by bowling.  Tommy had suggested they carpool and he’d pick everyone up, but Kimberly said it'd be easier for her to pick up Trini and they'd meet them there.  He assumed she just wanted to have girl time with her friend.  It was fine, it gave him time to chill and braid his hair.  He didn't want to spend too much time on deciding on what to wear, so he just settled on jeans, a green and grey baseball style shirt, and a black dickies jacket.  He felt good.

 

He waited some time before checking his phone.  They were supposed to meet the girls at 5:30 and it was already 5:10pm.  "Tammy!  You almost ready?!" he called out.

 

There was a pause before "Tomas, I swear you better stop calling me that!  And yeah, I'm coming!"  After a moment, she appeared from the back of the house.  "How do I look?"

 

Tamsin had her hair in a chonga bun, black skinny jeans, a black and white plaid long sleeve, and her brown suede jacket with the black hood.  Tommy smiled and nodded, "You look good, big sis.  Trini is going to swoon."

 

A relieved breath escaped Tamsin's mouth as she relaxed and said, "Kim too."

 

"Of course they are," Tommy said, "We're beautiful!"  He laughed.

 

"You're so stupid," Tamsin teased, "Okay, we should go."

 

"Man, I was waiting for your slow ass."  He was rewarded with a smack on his arm.  He shot Kimberly a quick text that they were on their way.

 

\---

 

**_ Tommy O  _ **

**_Tommy O (5:13 pm):_ ** _On our way *wink emoji*_

 

**_You (5:13 pm):_ ** _meet u there *kiss emoji*_

 

Kimberly put her phone away and grabbed her maroon leather jacket off Trini's desk chair, "They're on their way.  Let's go."  Kimberly couldn’t help but feel excited like a kid going to their first party.  She’d done double dates before, but this felt different.  It felt genuine, something Kimberly hadn’t really felt before.

 

Trini made an affirmation and grabbed her gold bomber and they headed down the stairs of Trini's home.  "Mamí!" she called out, "We're leaving!"

 

"When will you be back?" June asked, stepping out from the kitchen.

 

"Um, I dunno, maybe 12?  That okay?"

 

June made a face, "11."

 

Trini paused for a moment then nodded and said, "Okay.  Thanks, Mamí.  Bye."

 

"Bye Mrs. Kwan!" Kimberly bid before stepping outside with Trini.

 

They got into Kimberly's car, she started the ignition and they were off.  

 

"So how are we going to bowl tonight?" Kimberly asked, not taking her eyes off the road.

 

Trini shrugged, "How crappy of a bowler are you?"

 

Kimberly laughed, "I'm not horrible."

 

"That sounds promising," Trini said, her voice dripping with sarcasm.  "So, Billy said these communicator things are almost done.  The communication function works but the teleportation function still has some kinks to work out.  He's going to show us tomorrow after detention.  Speaking of which, when are you done?"

 

"Oh, Jason and I are in for the rest of the semester," Kimberly groaned.  She couldn't deny she didn't deserve it, but it still annoyed her that she was in more trouble for punching out Ty's tooth than for leaking Amanda's picture.  "Pretty sure Billy has at least another month."

 

"I have one more week."  Trini laughed, "I think Zack's gonna be there the rest of the year and next."

 

Kimberly chuckled, "You're probably right."

 

The rest of the drive was quick and when they drove into the parking lot, they saw that the Oliver twins were already there and waiting outside.  Kimberly and Trini exited the sedan and began to walk over to them.

 

"Hey, you," Tommy greeted Kimberly before leaning down and placing a quick kiss on her lips.  

 

Kimberly noticed Trini and Tamsin hugging each other hello before turning towards them.  "I don't know about you guys, but I'm starving."  They headed inside and took the first open tablet they could find.

 

\--- 

 

The pizza was good and greasy, and the soda was cold and refreshing, and holding Tamsin's hand under the table was a special kind of good.  Trini had to admit, the double date was a good idea.  But she'd never admit it to Kim.  The stories the twins would tell were hilarious, like how they had a cousin their age, whom they were close to, who had an older sibling who would torment them, but in an older sibling way.  Or when Tamsin and Tommy were wrestling once and they knocked over a table, effectively breaking their mother's lamp.  That's when she learned that "la chancla" was across many cultures.  Even Kim had mentioned being familiar with it.

 

Once they were done with their food, they went to rent their skates.  "I got this," Trini said as she gave the cashier money for both her and Tamsin's rentals.

 

"Okay, but I got the bowling."

 

"Okay."  Trini blushed when Tamsin hugged her then kissed the side of her head.

 

Once on the ice, Trini learned that she was worse at ice skating than she initially thought.  She had always hated roller blading but this was much worse.  Tamsin had stayed near her, but Trini told her to go out in the rink and have fun, that she'd eventually make it off the wall, but that was at least 15 minutes ago.  Kimberly wasn't having issues at all and Tommy looked stiff, but was managing.  Tamsin however moved like a professional.  She sped around the rink, went backwards, and even spun a little.  Trini was in such awe that she didn't care she barely moved five feet since Tamsin left her.

 

It did make her feel a little inadequate though.  Trini tried to straighten herself up and then pushed herself forward, finally letting go of the railing.  She wobbled forward, but she was moving.  She tried to move her foot to push herself forward, but a weird and uncomfortable feeling shot up her leg.  She gritted her teeth, clenched her fists, and stiffened again.  This wasn't how she imagined ice skating going.

 

Then someone came at her side and held her arm, "Need help?" Tamsin asked.

 

"Nah, I got this," Trini replied, trying to be nonchalant and hide her embarrassment, "Just have to get my bearings back."

 

"After 20 minutes?" Tamsin teased.

 

"Yes."  Truthfully, Trini was very embarrassed.  She wanted to keep playing calm and cool, but the blush on her cheeks was very apparent and she felt like an idiot.  What kind of girl can't ice skate?

 

"Here," Tamsin said as she moved one arm around Trini's waist while using the other to hold her arm, "Hang onto me," she paused when Trini put her hand on hers, "And I'll guide us forward, okay?"

 

Arms tightened around each other, but Trini couldn't tell if it was Tamsin, herself, or both.  "Okay."  

 

They both moved forward.  They were very stiff, but they were moving.  "See?  Not so scary, right?" Tamsin asked softly.

 

"Yeah, right," Trini replied, unsure of herself.

 

"I got you."  And Tamsin pushed them forward again, but a little harder this time and Trini picked up her feet, trying to keep her balance.  She tightened her hold on Tamsin, acutely aware that she had to be careful not to grip too hard because of her super strength.  "Little more," Tamsin said, pushing forward again.  Slowly, Trini was loosening her body and her back was straightening.  She felt a little freer and balanced enough that she began to loosen her hold on Tamsin.  She even used her own feet to push herself forward, going towards a corner in the rink.   "You're doing great, Trin."  

 

And that little nickname did something to her.  She blanked out and moved her foot, but the blade caught on her other foot and she lost her balance.  Of course it would happen when she was finally getting comfortable.  It was almost in slow motion; Trini trying to find her balance to prevent the inevitable fall to the ground.  Try as she might with flailing arms, she was going down and hitting her knees on the ice was going to hurt.  


But she never hit the ground.  Instead, Tamsin grabbed her arm and in a mess of limbs, she was able to prevent them both from falling when she caught Trini and brought her back up to her feet.  Tamsin had Trini against her with her arms around her waist as she held her close.  They were face to face.  "I told you I got you," Tamsin whispered.

 

And there, in that moment, those six words whispered to her engulfed her and Trini couldn't be bothered with anything else.  She looked into Tamsin's dark brown eyes and could see that any feelings she had, Tamsin definitely returned.  "I- I didn't d-," she stuttered, wanting to say “doubt you,” but she couldn’t get it out.  She swallowed her fear and moved forward, lifting herself up and finally, after two weeks of coffee dates, park dates, hanging out dates, looks that lasted longer than they should've, she finally she kissed her.  She kissed her with all the built-up feelings she had that she couldn't even begin to name.  Without breaking their kiss, Trini took a deep breath and could smell Tamsin's spearmint soap and it was the best scent she could ever smell.  She grabbed onto Tamsin's sleeves and pulled her closer as Tamsin's hand moved around her back.

 

"Finally!" a voice shouted and they broke apart.  "About damn time!"  It was Kim and she and Tommy were laughing as they were skating away.

 

They hadn't broken their embrace yet but Trini scowled and grumbled, "I am going to murder her."  


Tamsin giggled and slightly stroked her back, "I've got a shovel."  She pushed Trini back a little and moved hair from her face and gave her a small kiss.    


"Hey, so, real quick, I wanted to ask you something," Trini started then looked away from Tamsin to gather her courage, "So I like you and I want to be with you, you know?  Like, exclusively.  Um, do you?"

 

"What, you wanna go steady?"  Tamsin laughed.

 

"Oh god, never mind.  I can't be with anyone who says 'going steady.'  I take it back."

 

Tamsin laughed again and held onto Trini as she pretended to try to get away before laughing herself.  "Yes, Trini, I want to be exclusive too.  Now, let's go.  You were doing good."

 

"Sure I was," Trini drawled sarcastically as she tried to find her balance once again.  “One more question tho?”  Tamsin looked at her expectantly.  “How do you feel about school dances and masquerades?”

 

\---   


They ice skated for about another hour before returning the skates and walked to the bowling side.  The four were able to rent their shoes and acquired a lane.  It was decided that Kimberly and Tommy would be on one team versing Trini and Tamsin and the losing team would have to buy donuts.  They picked out their balls and got drinks and were getting ready to start the game when someone shouted, "Look who I found!"  It was Zack jumping down onto the sitting area.  "How are you guys?"

 

"Good," Kimberly replied, "What brings you here?"

 

"Well, the boys and I were hoping to throw some balls but all the lanes are taken."  On cue, Jason and Billy walked up behind him and waved their hellos.

 

"Did you guys want to join us?  We haven't started yet," Tommy offered.

 

"Yeah," Tamsin added, "We have two lanes for verses, we could all play."

 

"Really?" Billy asked hopefully.

 

"Yeah, dude," Tommy said, "It'll be fun."

 

"Okay, but," Trini interjected, "It's going to be the four of us against you guys."

 

The boys agreed but then Jason said, "Wait, there's only three of us against the four of you.  We need a fourth."

 

"Be right back!" Trini exclaimed as she ran off.  She saw Angela from her class exiting the arcade by herself and approached her.  After a moment of talking, they went to the counter and rented another pair of shoes.  Then they returned.  "Guys, this is Angela from my history class.  Angela, these are my friends, and you know Zack.  You'll be playing with Zack, Jason, and Billy."

 

"Hi everyone," Angela said.

 

They all gave greetings and Zack blushed and gave a small wave.

 

The rest of the night was carefree and fun and it turned out Angela was an exceptional bowler and so Jason, Billy, Zack, and Angela won.  Trini was able to learn that Angela thought Zack was cute, but he was a bit of a flake so she never really knew how to approach him.  She just told Angela to get his number and go from there.  Zack was grateful because he didn't know how to approach her without seeming like a desperate weirdo.

 

It was nearing 11 and the boys had gone and Angela's parents had picked her up. Trini pouted and whined that she had to get home.  Neither Trini nor Kimberly wanted to say goodbye, but she had to get home before 11 otherwise her mother would throw a fit.  They bid their respective significant others farewell before driving to Trini's.  Kimberly ended up spending the night since they both had to go to detention in a few hours anyways.

 

They were both happy, happier than they thought possible.

 

\--- 

 

The following morning, detention went by as usual and Mr. Dumphy made sure to assign everyone seats so they wouldn't be "disruptive" he said.  Once detention was over, the Oliver twins asked the girls if they wanted to go to lunch, but they both made excuses- Trini that she had to go home and watch her brothers; Kimberly that she hadn't been home since yesterday and needed to make an appearance- because they had training at the ship.  The duties of being a power ranger sometimes annoyed, but they understood it.  And luckily their significant others understood too.  

 

However, before they separated, Kimberly had wanted to ask Tommy to be her date to the fall masquerade and mentioned how they were all going as a group.  Tommy unsurprisingly accepted the invitation.

 

\--- 

 

The day wasn't a total loss for Tamsin nor Tommy.  They decided to go down by the pier and walk around, grab a bite to eat.  Tamsin drove them close to the beach.  Once they parked they exited and began walking towards the pier.

 

"Man," Tommy started, "It's almost completely destroyed."

 

Tamsin nodded, "Yeah, they're going to have to build it up from scratch."

 

"Maybe they'll add some rides, like the pier in Santa Monica!"  A big, toothy, opened mouth smile spread across Tommy's face.

 

"You should hashtag it.  Get it trending.  Hashtag, AG Pier Carnival Rides."

 

"Don't give me any ideas."

 

"Your ideas usually suck."  Tamsin shoved her brother.

 

"Don't be mean," Tommy faked whined, pushing her back.

 

They continued to walk and laugh and talk until they got to the pier.  There was a building that was still standing, despite looking like it was hanging on by a thread.  

 

"I've got a really stupid idea," Tommy said, a sly grin on his face.

 

"I think I have the same stupid idea," Tamsin hummed.

 

They walked toward the building, climbing through the broken windows.  Inside, all the shelves had been toppled.  There were holes in the ceiling and they could see through to the sky.  Dust and debris littered the floor and cracks decorated the walls so much so that the frame could be seen.  

 

"I wonder what this shop was?" Tommy asked out loud.

 

They looked around and saw no indication of whatever was sold here.  

 

"I don't know, but the name of the place was 'Atlantis' so I'll assume it was ocean stuff."  Tamsin walked around a broken counter and saw another opening to a back room, "Hey, check it out."

 

They walked in and saw a desk and a broken chair.  Because they were curious teenagers who were already trespassing, they looked through the desk but didn't find anything interesting.  Then something fell over and a stray cat hissed and ran off.  Tamsin let out a surprised scream and she and Tommy threw their arms up in a defensive position.  They waited a moment before they both put their arms down.  

 

In the distance, they heard a commotion but a strange green hue near the corner caught their attention.  They slowly walked up to it and Tommy moved a piece of debris and under it was a strange green stone, almost like a coin.  It glowed and it was so enticing.  Both Tamsin and Tommy bent to pick it up and they both touched it at the same time and when their fingers touched it, they felt something shoot up their arms and through their bodies.  It didn't hurt, but it definitely didn't feel good. 

 

They nearly fell back and looked at each other and suddenly they just wanted to be anywhere but there.  A small panic settling in center of their chests and they knew they needed to get away.

 

Tommy grabbed Tamsin's wrist and ran toward the direction they entered.  But they were so enthralled by that strange coin that they hadn't heard the commotion from earlier was now right outside.  There were those rock creatures, putties right outside throwing debris around.  The power rangers were outside too, fighting them.

 

"Shit," Tommy hissed, "We can't go out there."  

 

They ran back further inside the store and hid behind a partially standing shelf.

 

"Dammit," Tamsin growled, "They're making a mess again."

 

They were angry and they wanted to leave but this fight going on in front of them wasn't allowing them.  But neither twin was sure who they were mad at exactly.  Was it the putties?  Or the power rangers?  It didn't matter because eventually enough bodies, both rangers and putties, were thrown into the frame of the building that it shook and began to crumple.

"Shit!" Tamsin shouted, "Run!"

But by the time they got halfway across the store, the entire building collapsed on top of them.

_To be continued..._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry the spacing is a little weird. I was a bit lazy to fix it, but the breaks are where they needed to be so we're good.


	6. Deal with the Devil

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The green power coin has chosen its host. Meanwhile, the rangers are trying out new tech.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I realized the spacing is a bit messed up on here and I'm sorry about that, but I'm too lazy to fix it. Doesn't hurt the POVs or POV changes so we're good!

 

Chapter 5

Deal with the Devil

 

_"The coin found a new host!"_

 

_What the hell was that?  Am I sleeping?  Am I dreaming?_

 

_Tamsin?  What's going on?_

 

_Tommy?!  You can hear me?_

 

_"I feel the green energy leaving me, Finster!  What's happening?!"_

 

_Tommy, who the hell is that?_

 

_I don't know, but I feel weird.  I can't see anything.  Where are we?  Are we sleeping?  Wait, no we can't be.  Right?_

 

_I don't know._

 

_"How is that possible?!"_

 

_No, seriously, Tommy, who the hell is that and how can we both hear her?_

 

_How the hell should I know?!  I don't even know where we're at!_

 

_"Finster, someone on earth found my coin!  I feel its energy leaving me.  My armor, it's disappearing!"_

 

_Why can we hear her?  Why is everything so dark?  Tommy, I'm freaking out._

 

_I know, me too.  But I see something.  Like a green light._

 

_You're right.  I see it too._

 

_It's strong.  I feel like it's calling to me._

 

_Me too._

 

_"Whoever has my coin will have the power of the green ranger."_

 

_Tamsin, do you think she's talking about us?_

 

_She has to be.  But what coin is she talking about?_

 

_That green thing we found maybe?_

 

_"Maybe this is a good thing.  Whoever has this power will have the power to defeat the power rangers."_

 

_I feel it giving me strength, Tamsin.  I'm feeling good.  I'm feeling strong._

 

_Me too._

 

_Haha, man, this is gonna be awesome.  No one is going to mess with us now._

 

_Or with Dad.  They'll be sorry._

 

_You see all this green light?_

 

_Yes, shish dazha, I do._

 

_\---_

 

Trini had sent several text messages and called more times than she cared to admit, but Tamsin hadn't answered.  After she they parted after detention, she hadn't heard from her and her worry grew.  Apparently, Kim hadn't heard from Tommy either and they both wanted to go to the twin's home, but neither knew where they lived.  And now she was at school, her battery on her phone at 60%, and the day hadn't even started.  

 

"Good morning," Kim greeted as she walked up to their shared locker.

 

"Hey."

 

"Heard from them yet?"  Kim began to rummage through the locker.  Trini shook her head and looked down.  They stayed there for a few moments in silence as Kim finished gathering what she needed before closing it.  "What should we do?" she asked.

 

"I don't know.  I think Billy said he has English with Tommy?  Maybe he could-"

 

"Hey babe!" Tamsin shouted, walking towards Trini and Kim.

 

"Oh my god," Trini exclaimed, wrapping Tamsin in a hug, "What the hell happened?"

 

Tamsin laughed, "Relax."

 

"Is Tommy okay?" Kim asked a little anxiously.

 

"Hmm?  Oh, yeah, he's fine.  We're both fine, no thanks to the power rangers."

 

"What?  What happened?"  Trini swallowed the lump in her throat and stole a glance at Kim.

 

"Man, I swear they cause as much destruction as those weird monsters.  Twice I've seen them and twice Tommy and I got hurt."

 

"You got hurt?" Kim asked.

 

"How?" Trini added.

 

"Tommy and I were at the pier, being delinquents and there was a fight between them and the building we were inside fell on us.  We went home and slept almost all of yesterday."  Tamsin flipped her long, loose hair, and ran her fingers through it.  "But enough about that, I don't want to talk about it.  How about," she drawled, wrapping an arm around Trini's shoulders, "We take the day off?"  Then she turned to Kim, "You too.  Tommy's down, no doubt."

 

Kim gave a pensive look, and Trini is sure Kim would ditch with them, but she's been trying not to be that person anymore.  Then Trini says, "We have a bio test today.  We can't miss it."

 

Tamsin rolls her eyes and groans, "Oh my god, who cares about biology.  We're messing up the planet anyways and people don't give a shit about living things."

 

"I totally would," Kim said, "But, like Trini said, we have a test.  And I'm finally getting my parents off my back and if I get a call from school they'll flip."

 

"Yeah," Trini starts, "My mom is actually being chill with me too."

 

Then Tamsin's eyes went dark and she removed her arm from Trini's shoulders.  "Seriously?"  Her voice had a level of annoyance to it.  "You don't wanna go?  Because of a test?"

 

"Well, normally we would, it's just the test is kind of important for our grade," Trini said.

 

"Whatever.  I'm heading out.  Later."  Then Tamsin turned and began walking away without another word.

 

"What the hell was that all about?" Kim asked, her eye brows furrowing as she looked in the direction Tamsin had walked.

 

"I don't know," Trini said as she shook her head.

 

\--- 

 

They decided to hike the mountains, not giving too much thought into where they were going, they just wanted to be away from the hell that was school.  Tommy had pushed a jock into the lockers and didn't stick around.  Tamsin just didn't care and walked right passed security.  They tried to stop her, but when they grabbed her arm, she nearly twisted it behind them, pushed them to the ground and walked on her way.  The twins met in the parking lot and got into their shared jeep and drove until they had reached the mountains.  Now they were just hiking through the trails, climbing and jumping off trees and Tommy, testing out their new-found strength, punched a boulder in half.

 

"It's because of this coin, I feel it," Tommy said, pulling out the green coin from his back pocket.  He held it in his hand, a gleam in his eyes as he felt the surge of power from it.

 

Tamsin took it from his hands and held it herself.  She could also feel the power when she touched it as she gently touched it with her fingers from her other hand.  "You're right, shi na’áá.  I feel it too.  I wonder what this thing is."

 

"Do you think that voice was right?  It's a coin to make us like the power rangers?"  Tommy couldn't help the excitement.

 

Tamsin shrugged, "I dunno.  If it is, how do we use it?"  It would be extremely useful to be able to use this power at will.

 

They continued hiking and being rambunctious, not caring about the noise they made or animals they scared.  It was fun to walk around feeling a massive power surging through them.  They felt like they could do anything.

 

Then they came across one of those putties.  "Na’áá," Tamsin said, "Look at that."

 

Tommy smiled, "Well, well, if it isn't a putty."  

 

The putty made a growling noise and flexed its three arms before stomping.

 

"Now, now, none of that," Tamsin teased with a smirk as she began to walk towards it, "Or you might regret it."

 

Then another putty stepped out from behind a tree.  And another jumped from the cliff above and landed in a heap in front of them.

 

"Hmm," Tommy hummed, "Looks like you guys are smarter than you let on."

 

The putties all together roared and charged the twins.  Tommy was able to duck and hook a putty in the side before being back handed into a tree.  Tamsin did a round house kick and sent the first putty flying to the side and tried a jab-jab-uppercut combination on the next, but the putty grabbed her hand at her first jab before lifting her up then throwing her off to the side like a rag doll.

 

"Damn," Tommy grunted, "They're strong."  He staggered to his feet, moving hair from his face.

 

Tamsin rolled to her belly and pushed herself up, "But we're stronger and smarter."  She smirks as she brought her fists up to her face.  "We got this."  Tamsin rolled her shoulders and became light on her feet.  This was a fight for kick boxing she decided and as soon as a putty came close to her, she faked a right hook, but then used her right leg to connect a backwards round house kick and sent the putty flying.

 

A putty had jumped forward but Tommy came at it from the side and sucker punched it to ground.  He looked up at Tamsin with a smirk.  They high fived then slightly moved away from each other.  Tommy ducked two throws at him before punching the putty in the abdomen then hammering his fist into the back of its head.

 

It didn't take too long to take down the five putties.  The twins had some gashes along their arms and faces but the smiled triumphantly as the last putty crumpled into dust.

 

"How about that, dadee?" Tommy announced, "We took care of five of these things and barely did damage to our surroundings."

 

Tamsin huffed, "Yeah, we did."  Then a ruffling in the bushes nearby made the twins whip their heads toward the noise and they got back into fighting stances.  "You think there's more?"

 

"I dunno," Tommy replied, shaking his head.  "Come out!" he shouted, bringing his fists back up to his face and rounding his shoulders.

 

"And just what do you think you can do to me, humans?!" a growled voiced called out.  Then a grotesque body followed.  It was hideous.  Its body was covered in golden armor and its face was animalistic with sharp teeth coming out of its snarled snout and eyes a glowing red.  In its hand was a huge, heavy looking sword.  "Pathetic weaklings!  You stole my mistress's coin!  I'm here to take it back."

 

"You're crazy, we didn't steel anything!" Tommy shouted, his fists clenching.

 

"You possess the green power coin, do you not?  That belongs to my mistress, Rita."

 

"Then come and get it from us," Tamsin taunted.  She didn't give into human bullies and she'd be damned if she was going to allow this ugly, golden alien bully push her and Tommy around.

 

"With pleasure!" the alien shouted and charged them.

 

The alien swung its sword and Tommy rolled out of the way while Tamsin took the opportunity to kick it in the side.  It did almost nothing and the monster backhanded her, throwing her several feet away.  Tommy came back up and jumped up and used the momentum to make himself airborne to punch the alien across the face.  The alien barely moved its snout and grabbed Tommy by the throat and lifted him as Tommy's hands gripped the arm of the golden armor as he struggled to breathe.  "Silly human, what did you think you could do to Goldar?!"

 

Tamsin lifted her dizzy head off the ground and saw two of both Tommy and Goldar.  She shook her head to clear it and the sight she saw scared her.  Her little brother was being lifted off the ground by a monstrous alien and was slowly choking him.   _I can't let this happen,_  she thought to herself.

 

 _He’s going to kill me,_  Tommy thought back.  

 

A surge flowed through Tamsin and her arm was hot.  She jumped to her feet then ran and propelled herself up into the air.  With her hand in a fist, she connected with the back of Goldar's head and then he dropped Tommy.  It made Goldar stumble forward and nearly drop his heavy sword.  Tamsin stood there, tall with her fist clenched, but her entire right arm was armored much like a biotic arm, except the armor shone green with a gold hue.

 

"You okay, na’áá?" Tamsin asked, breathing heavily.

 

Tommy looked up at her in awe, his mouth hanging open.

 

"You will regret that, human," Goldar growled as Tamsin brought her fists up, the green armor began to disappear.  It panicked her but she held her ground as Goldar charged her.  Her initial plan was to move and use his momentum against him, but he was apparently smarter than she anticipated and instead grabbed her with his arm, wrapping it around her stomach and threw her over his shoulder.  She landed in a heap and she got the wind knocked out of her.  Then Goldar placed his foot on her chest.  She huffed, but no sound came out as she grabbed onto his leg and tried in vain to remove it.  "I've had enough of you," Goldar said as he began to press his foot down harder.  It was painful and Tamsin was having trouble breathing as she kicked out her feet.  She tried any movement she could to get loose, but she was stuck.

 

To Tommy, the entire encounter he witnessed was all in slow motion.  He saw his sister getting crushed and his head was dizzy and he still couldn't say a word because his throat hurt.  But he felt a surge of power in his chest and he heated up.  With shaky feet, he picked himself up, clenching his fists and felt his entire body on fire.  There was so much at stake here and he screamed a roar unlike anything he'd ever heard.  It was primal and filled with rage as he got into a dead run and headed straight for Goldar.  All of a sudden, his vision changed and it was as if he was looking through a computer lens or screen of some sort.  Something was different, but he couldn't stop to check himself as he needed to stop Goldar from killing Tamsin.  

 

The moment Tommy got to Goldar, he plowed himself into the monster and picked him up and body slammed him.  Then he grabbed onto Goldar's chest plate and picked him up and punched him once, then twice, and a third time before throwing him into a tree, breaking it.  When the tree fell to the ground, Tommy grabbed a thick branch and broke it off.  "I've had enough of  _you_ ," he snarled, twirling the branch in his hands.  "Get up!" Tommy demanded, "Get up you piece of shit!"

 

"How dare you raise your voice to me like that, human," Goldar growled as he rose, sword in hand.

 

Tamsin was still on the ground, barely able to move her head to watch the scene unfold.  She was in utter shock and awe as Tommy was able to call on the powers of that coin to get the armor.  And as they predicted, the suit was identical to that of a power ranger, only it was green with a gold shield like covering around the chest and shoulders.  

 

"Hey, you're the one who messed with us," Tommy countered, "And now, I'm done talking."  He ran at Goldar again and swung the branch.  Goldar used his sword to strike at the branch, cutting it in half, but Tommy didn't care.  The branch was only a distraction anyways as he took the opportunity to grab Goldar's arm and twist it behind his back.  The heat from the suit rose, but it wasn't uncomfortable, rather is was exhilarating.  It made Tommy feel like he was getting stronger and he easily blocked Goldar's other arm that he used to try and elbow Tommy before he twisted it also behind Goldar's back.  Tommy tightened his grip and pulled harder, so eagerly wanting to tear off those arms.  "You're done," Tommy said with a darkness in his voice.

 

Then something hit Tommy in the chest and sent him flying back and he rolled a few times before stopping near Tamsin, who finally managed to get to her knees, while still clutching her chest.  Tommy's armor began to recede and fade as he clenched his fists.  In front of them stood another monstrosity in gold, but it looked more grotesque than Goldar.  Its face was distorted and neither Tommy nor Tamsin could make out what it resembled.  Then it caught whatever it was that it threw at Tommy with clawed hands.  

 

"You'll do well to calm yourself," it hissed, its voice high pitched, sounding like a reptilian creature from an old sci-fi movie.

 

"What the hell are you?" Tommy wondered aloud.  He brought himself up to his knees and placed a gentle hand on Tamsin's shoulder as she crawled closer to him.

 

"I am Scorpina and we were sent here to test you two by orders of Rita."

 

"Who the hell is Rita?" Tamsin demanded.

 

"The true owner of the green power coin!" Goldar shouted as he rose to his feet.

 

Scorpina brought out a device from behind her.  It looked like a walkie-talkie, but then it made a hologram and it was of that woman in green that attacked Angel Grove a few weeks back, only now she was wearing black.

 

"This is Rita," Scorpina said, "And she is pleased with your ability to wield the powers of the green coin."

 

"It seems both of you can use it," Goldar added. 

 

 _"Hello, both of you.  I've been watching you,"_ Rita said,  _"And I like what I see."_

 

"What do you want?" Tommy demanded, getting up to his feet, his fists at his sides, his knuckles white.

 

Tamsin rose to her feet and stood next to her brother.

 

_"The same thing you want; the destruction of the power rangers."_

 

"Why us?  Why don't you send in your goons over here?" Tamsin challenged.  

 

"How dare you?!" Goldar roared.

 

 _"Goldar!  Calm yourself,"_ Rita said then turned her attention back to the twins,  _"I am powerful and my friends here will help, but you have something they don't; a coin.  You can gain access to the ship and you can destroy the grid to prevent them from morphing."_

 

"Ship?  The power rangers have a ship?" Tamsin asked.

 

"Do you know where it's at?" Tommy added.

 

_"In the quarry.  Underground.  Follow your girlfriends.  They'll lead you in the right direction."_

 

"Our girlfriends?  What do you know about them?" Tommy questioned.

 

"How do you know about Trini and Kimberly?!" Tamsin demanded.

 

Both Tommy and Tamsin felt the same heat of anger boiling through them.  The small thin hairs on the back of their necks stuck up and both took a step forward in a threatening manner.  Their fists were tight; Tamsin's nails dug into her palms and Tommy's knuckles were even whiter than before.  Both of them lowered their heads and flared their nostrils.

 

"Do not step any closer or else you will feel my wrath once again!" Goldar threatened.

 

 _"I see everything,"_ Rita answered,  _"And as I said, I'm very impressed with you two.  Now, listen, you must destroy the grid and cut off power to the ship.  It'll make Zordon disappear and the ranger will be cut off from their powers."_

 

"Wait," Tamsin said, calming herself, "If the power rangers are connected to this morphing grid, then why are Tommy and I able to use the green coin without it?"

 

A sinister smile appeared on Rita's holographic face.   _"That is a beautiful question.  It's simple.  The green energy was changed.  It doesn't need to be connected to the other coins or to the morphing grid like the others.  The green coin uses your own life energy.  But don't worry, it won't kill you.  It'll only make you stronger."_

 

Tommy and Tamsin looked at each other.  They didn't want to work with a villain, but they also wanted to show the power rangers that they weren’t the only special beings in town anymore.  That with power comes the ability to make peace, even if it was by force.

 

"Okay," Tommy said, "We'll do it."

 

\---

 

Kimberly laid in her bed staring up at the ceiling with one hand under her head and the other across her abdomen.  She kept replaying the scene between Trini and Tamsin in her head and tried to come up with some reason why Tamsin was acting the way she was.  She’d known the girl over two weeks and she seemed to be sincere and nice and down to earth, so the whole ditching school seemed extremely out of character.  It killed Kimberly to see the hurt in Trini’s eyes when Tamsin walked away, dismissing her so easily.  It almost made Kimberly angry and she almost wanted to go after Tamsin and confront her, but she thought better of it.  Trini had suggested that maybe being caught in the middle of two battles where she got hurt each time probably caused this kind of reaction.  Kimberly agreed that it was possible, but she still didn’t like it. 

 

What she didn’t like even more so was that Tommy hadn’t returned her texts.  She knew he was okay, if Tamsin was telling the truth, and Kimberly didn’t think she was lying, but she couldn’t figure why he wouldn’t just respond with a simple “I’m fine.” 

 

Kimberly loudly groaned and hit her bed, leaving her arms to her side.  Sleep wasn’t coming to her.  She looked at the clock and saw it was 11:40 at night; it wasn’t too late so she decided to go for a short run.  She quickly put on a sports bra, changed her shorts, and put her running shoes on. 

 

Sneaking out of her house- and sneaking into the other’s- had become second nature now and she did it with such ease, she was sure she could become a thief if she wanted to.  She laughed at the thought.

 

She was able to use her super speed as there wasn’t anyone on the roads, but she still kept to the shadows.  Eventually she found herself heading towards the quarry.  She smirked in spite of herself as it occurred to her she always found her way back here whenever she was running or just trying to clear her head.

 

Looking through the dark woods, which were lightly illuminated by the moonlight, she decided a short hike wouldn’t hurt.  Perhaps it would help calm her even more so.  So, she began to ascend a trail she was very familiar with and walked it with muscle memory.  The entire area smelled like pine and fresh water.  It was very soothing.

 

She must’ve been walking for several minutes and then there was a noise that sounded like something heavy was breaking followed by some kind of growl.  Kimberly slowed down and stepped into the shadows for cover.  She slowly rounded the brush and halted and several feet away she saw two creatures with gold armor seemingly talking among themselves.  She was too far away to hear exactly what they were saying except she heard “Goldar.”

 

Kimberly took in a sharp breath in disbelief and gripped the tree she was holding.  Goldar was alive and had a partner.  He must’ve been brought back by Rita and she sent much more trouble than her and the rest of the team and Zordon could’ve imagined.

 

 _Shit,_ she thought to herself, _This is so not good._ She had to get out of there and she had to get out of there as quietly as she could.  Not only would this unwanted fight be two on one, but without those devices Billy and Alpha were working on, those morphers, and without her being on the ship’s bridge, she would be unarmed.  She backed up slowly, taking a few steps before she turned around and gasped as she was face to face with a disgusting skeletal monster.

 

“Hello there,” the skeletal monster said, “I am Bones and you shouldn’t be here.”  Its voice sounded distorted, almost like a malfunctioning robot.

 

“Right,” Kimberly acknowledged, side stepping, trying to get some distance between herself and Bones, “You’re absolutely right.  I’m, uh, just going to leave.  Right now.  Sorry to disturb you.”  She tried to run but Bones grabbed the back of her shirt and threw her back.

 

“You cannot go anywhere.”

 

Panic was itching to settle, but Kimberly used all her will power to keep it at bay.  She couldn’t freak out, not here and she knew it.  “I thought you said I shouldn’t be here?”  Maybe a little reverse psychology would help.  Rita’s monsters are hopefully dumber than they appear.

 

Then Bones pulled out a sword, “Let’s have some fun, shall we?”

 

Kimberly groaned, “I really don’t think we need to do this.”  Bones then swung his sword at her head, which she ducked and rolled out of the way.  “Apparently we do,” she mumbled then thought to herself, _But damn, I’m alone and I can’t morph without the others._   Without much of a choice, she braced herself.  Bones swung again and this time, his sword caught her tank and tore it along her abdomen.  “Man, I liked this top,” she whined.  She ran at Bones and jumped up in the air kicking him square in the chest.  Then she felt her hands burning, but it wasn’t painful.  She looked down and saw her hands were covered in her pink armor.  _Well, this is interesting,_ she thought to herself.  But it definitely was convenient that her armor did appear when she needed it, even if a little.  She charged Bones again and side stepped his sword and threw a hook, hitting him in the ribs before throwing another punch and making him step back.

 

But her luck didn’t last as Bones blocked her next attack and knocked her down.  He stabbed at her on the floor, but she rolled over and tried to sweep at him, but he jumped over her legs.  She rolled backwards to get to her feet and stared at Bones.  Her armor had vanished from her hands and now she was completely vulnerable.  She needed to get away, especially before Goldar and the other golden creature came.  If those two came and joined Bones, she was doomed.  She looked around and saw a fallen tree and a low branch.  She got up and ran as fast as she could and used the fallen tree to propel herself up to the low branch, then from there launch herself into the air and torpedoed herself to kick Bones in the chest with both her feet, sending him flying into a tree and destroying it. 

 

She landed on her back and got the wind knocked out of her, but she couldn’t waste any time trying to breathe again.  She knew she needed to get away and get away fast.  There was no air in her lungs and she wobbled on her feet trying to move forward but the moment she came to a hill, she threw herself forward and rolled all the way down. 

 

Twigs, rocks, and earth scratched Kimberly up and she was sure she was bleeding but she couldn’t stop to think about it.  The moment she got to the bottom of the hill, she got to her feet, despite her dizzy head, and ran.  She kept running until she was so far from the quarry that she couldn’t even see it anymore and only then did she slow down.  The neighborhood she was currently in wasn’t one she recognized, but she wasn’t worried.  She had time to catch her breath now and took advantage of a home that had no fence and grabbed the front hose and turned it on, drinking some water and washing her hands, arms, and face.  Then she sat on the front steps.  She needed to recount what had just happened.

 

Goldar was alive and he had not one partner, but two.  There was a skeletal monster named Bones who was strong and now knew that she knew where they were.  This wasn’t good.  Rita not only was still alive and sending putties, but she was apparently sending monsters and then her right hand goon was still alive.  And apparently her right hand goon had a right hand goon. 

 

Kimberly shook her head.  She wished she never got out of bed.  She also wished she had brought her phone with her to at least send the team a text about what she saw tonight, but it’d have to wait until she got home.  Groaning, Kimberly stood up on shaky legs, which burned because of the numerous scratches all over, and began to walk towards the nearest cross street.  She wasn’t worried about being lost, Angel Grove was a small town.  Once she got to a major street, which wasn’t far, she’d find her home easily.  She only worried about the inevitable battle with Rita’s apparent growing army.


	7. Untouchable

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry I didn't update for months. I was training on a new job and it took soooo much energy. Please enjoy this chapter!

Notes: I took some time thinking about the communicators because I wanted to include them, but I knew they had to be changed up from the show because who the hell wears watches anymore? I hope I did them justice.

Chapter 6  
Untouchable

Tommy and Tamsin had been waiting outside of their school for their girlfriends to come out for just under an hour. Rita told them to follow them, to find out their truth. They were curious, but also anxious about what this supposed truth was. Rita wouldn’t just tell them whatever secret it was as if they were kittens and Rita was just teasing them, hanging this string of information in front of them, but not giving it to them. In truth, they knew they probably shouldn’t have trusted Rita so willingly, especially knowing how much destruction she caused to the town before, but curiosity was a hell of a thing, and, like the kittens they were, it got the better of them. So there they were, siting in their jeep, waiting for an hour.

Tamsin bit her nails and Tommy was no less anxious as his leg shook. "It's almost 3:00," he said.

"I know."

"What do you think it is? Think they're the power rangers?"

"I don't know. How would you feel about that?"

Tommy shook his head, "I don't know."

Then it was 3:00 and the student body began to exit from the school. The twins waited until they finally saw their girlfriends, and friends, exit together. Neither twin could help but notice the solemn faces their respective girlfriend had on her face. But it wasn't something they could think about then. They watched as the group piled into Kimberly's car and pulled out of the parking lot. 

Tamsin turned on the ignition and began to follow. "Not too close," Tommy warned.

"I know what I'm doing," Tamsin asserted.

They followed them up to the mountains and when they saw the group turn into the abandoned mine, they knew they couldn't follow them by car any longer. They decided it best to park their jeep and proceed on foot. After all, they had super speed on their side now.

They stuck to the trees, out of sight as they kept their eyes on Kimberly's car. By the time she parked, they were deep in the quarry. They watched as their friends got out and walked to a chasm then they jumped in.

"Oh my god," Tamsin uttered.

"What the hell did we just see?" Tommy asked, unbelieving.

"They just willingly jumped in."

The twins moved from their position and walked forward, cautiously. They peered down into the chasm and heard laughter and water splashing. "There's a pool down there?" Tommy couldn't believe what he witnessed.

"I guess. But what does this have to do with the secret?"

"Maybe we just wait them out?"

Tamsin nodded then motioned for them to go back to the woods and stay in the shade. They waited for what felt like hours, but likely it was maybe 45 minutes before they heard a commotion. They got to their feet and peaked around the brush and saw the group dusting themselves off. They weren't wet.

"How'd they get out of there?" Tamsin asked aloud, mostly to herself.

Tommy shook his head but said nothing.

They continued watching as the group looked on at Billy speaking. The twins were too far to hear anything but Billy pulled something out of his pocket and then a flash of light.

Neither Tommy nor Tamsin could believe their eyes... 

\---

"Are you certain of what you saw, Kimberly?" Zordon asked, his head slightly tilting forward.

Kimberly could tell his eye brows would be scrunched with worry, if he had form. "I'm very sure," she stated.

"This is very troubling. It appears Rita has much more power than we thought."

"Or maybe she's got help?" Billy offered. "I mean, she's not on the planet, right? But she's alive. I mean, she's gotta be getting help."

"Oh most definitely," Alpha said.

"Guys," Jason said, moving so he was in front of the team, "We've got to be diligent now. We've got to stay on our toes. Keep our eyes and ears open. And we've got to stay in touch. Sorry Kim and Trini but I think we might have to up the training."

Kimberly understood, but it didn't mean she was entirely happy about it. From the sigh Trini made, she could guess Trini felt the same.

"Why do you gotta single us out, Jay?" Trini asked, her voice annoyed.

"I don't mean to single you out, I'm just saying that you might have to cut back on," Jason paused, moving his hand around, "Uh, personal time? I guess?"

"Personal time?" Kimberly quipped and let out an amused laugh, "Wow, that was... Awkward. Besides, I don't think us having 'personal time' will be a problem."

"What do you mean?"

"Don't worry about it," Trini insisted, crossing her arms. 

The look on Trini's face told Kimberly she was set in not continuing the conversation. She really couldn't blame her. She herself was still upset at how Tommy was acting and now to be called out like this? She'd have to have a talk with Jason later.

"Maybe we should think about skipping the masquerade," Jason said, rubbing his jaw.

"What?" Zack protested, "Dude, why?"

"We can't be distracted. We have to be prepared in case of something."

"So, what, we can't have any down time?"

The tension was growing between Jason and Zack again and it always put Kimberly on edge. She shifted her weight on her feet and got herself ready to get between them if the need arose. She felt Trini doing the same.

"I'm not saying that," Jason countered, "I'm just saying that right now, we can't afford distractions."

"It's one night."

"Jason," Zordon interrupted, "Zack is right. You need to have time for yourselves. You can go to your... masquerade and still be on guard. Billy, I believe you have an announcement to make?"

Every looked toward Billy, who licked his lips as he stepped forward, while Jason stepped to the side. Kimberly leaned against a powered down console and crossed her arms while Trini went and stood next to her.

"Okay," Billy began, "So, as you know, Alpha and I have been working on devices to help us morph outside the ship's bridge and to teleport to the ship, you know, so we don't have to go through the water." Kimberly smiled. She really hated going through the water and struggling to make that landing, even if she was the best at it. "So, I call these guys: power morphers." Billy pulled out a metal oval thing and held it up. It appeared to Kimberly that Billy's coin was in the center and had a slight glow to it. "So, with these, we should be able to morph where ever, whenever, and we won't even need to be near each other."

"So, if we get caught alone," Trini began, "We'll be able to morph and defend ourselves better?"

"That would be correct, Trini!" Alpha answered excitedly. "With these morphers, you'll have your powers maximum at your disposal."

"I'll show you guys how they work in a sec," Billy said as he turned to a nearby panel and pulled out a second device. "This here," he held it up; it was an iWatch, "These are, what I'm calling, communicators. I rewired these old iWatches to work on the ship’s radio wave so we can communicate like walkie-talkies, so we could talk to each other without our cells. You know, like, in case Kimberly breaks hers again."

"It was one time," Kimberly mumbled. She heard Trini chuckle next to her as she felt Trini's elbow hit her softly.

"I got one for everybody! And with color matching straps!" Billy and Alpha passed around the communicators. 

Kimberly held hers up and examined it. “Can it still count my steps?” she asked, somewhat jokingly. 

“You know, that’s a good idea! I should try to add apps to them.” 

“I like that it still tells time,” Trini said.

Billy brought up his communicator, "So, the right button we use to talk. Like I said, a walkie-talkie, you press it and scroll it. You can either pick one person to call or everyone."

"But what about, like, answering?" Zack asked.

"Press the screen. And when you’re receiving a call, it'll vibrate. I mean, we'll have to practice and get used to it but it can be like group texts, which we should still use by the way. I mean, this communicator really is for emergencies anyways."

"Right," Jason agreed.

"The bottom button is a distress button. I set it to send out an emergency message, kinda like the alerts we get on our phones, but it’ll be in Morse Code; S.O.S."

Trini cleared her throat, "Besides me, and Billy obviously, does anyone here know Morse Code?" Both Jason and Zack mumbled their no's and Kimberly looked at Trini pointedly. Clearly, she did not know Morse Code.

“How do you know Morse Code?” Kimberly asked.

“My dad’s a military veteran,” Trini replied nonchalantly.

"That's okay, we'll show you. And anyways, we only need to know S-O-S." Billy smiled. "And then, once the distress call is sent, when we teleport, we can teleport to you. Or whoever presses the distress button. Okay, so to teleport, all you gotta do is press and hold the screen and the watch will vibrate then you’ll teleport. Now, no matter where we are, outside, we'll be able to teleport back to the ship and onto our podiums."

"Even if we're 100's of miles away?" Zack asked.

"Why would you be 100's of miles away?" Bill responded. Zack just shrugged. "Uh, yeah, yeah, even if you were 100's of miles away.”

“Cool.”

“What about teleporting out?” Kimberly asked. If it meant she didn’t have to ruin another leather jacket going through water, or leaving it outside, she’d be eternally grateful.

Billy pointed at her excitedly, “Best part!” He cleared his throat then continued, “We stand on our podiums and press the teleport button and we’ll be teleported right outside the cliff.”

“So, no more water?”

“No more water.”

“I’m in!”

The rest of the team chimed in and all collected their communicators and looked them over. “Okay, guys,” Jason started, “Let’s test these out.” Slowly, everyone walked to their podiums. Kimberly practically floated to hers. She couldn’t lie about being excited to skipping the swim. Sure, she loved swimming but not when it meant getting to the ship.

Everyone stepped onto the platforms and they all looked at each other. Trini locked eyes with Kimberly and it was suddenly very reminiscent of when they first stepped on there when Zordon was first brought online. “Okay, time to teleport. Three, two, one…” They all pressed the screens of their watches and suddenly Kimberly saw a pink light. It was all she saw. Her entire body surged with hot energy, very similar to when she morphed. Except it didn’t make just her skin tingle, instead it made her insides tingle and hum. She couldn’t see anything but pink light, couldn’t hear anything but a sort of crackling noise, and she felt like she couldn’t breathe, but at the same time she could. It was hard to describe, but it didn’t make her panic. She couldn’t tell if she was upside down or right side up, couldn’t tell if she was going forward or backwards, but she didn’t feel dizzy. It just felt as if she was in some sort of suspended animation, except she was fully aware.

Then her feet hit the ground and she stumbled onto someone and she heard a groan. Then she felt a slight heaviness on her and another groan, “Aw man.” She couldn’t tell who it was but then another weight landed on them. 

They were all on top of each other in a pile. “Hey, guys,” she whined as the bodies on top of her moved. 

It was Zack and Trini. Jason was below her and Billy below him.

They all shuffled to their feet and straightened their clothes and hair. Billy rose, dusting off his pants. “Sorry, guys,” he said meekly, “I guess Alpha and I still have to do more adjustments.”

“It’s cool,” Zack said, “That was actually pretty fun.”

“Yeah, until you landed on me,” Trini mumbled.

“You’d be fine with it if I was Tamsin.”

“Shut up.” Trini punched him in the arm and he responded by laughing.

"Jason," Billy said, "Should I show you guys the morpher? How to morph, I mean?"

"Yeah, Billy, that's a good idea," Jason answered, "Show us."

"Okay," Billy whispered, "Okay." He set his feet and rolled his shoulders and lifted his head, reaching for his pocket, "It's morphin' time!" He threw out his arms, his morpher in his hands. A bright, blue light exploded out and then Kimberly could see his armor coming out from the center and consuming Billy. It was exactly how they usually morphed, except they weren't on the ship. They were outside. Outside and Billy was morphing. A big, open mouth smile appeared on her face and she looked at everyone else noticing the amused and awe-struck looks across each one of them. Then Billy was fully morphed. His hands were empty and his coin attached to him, but now it was with the morpher instead of on its own. "See?!" Billy exclaimed, clapping his hands.

"Dude," Zack cooed, "That's so cool."

"So dope," Trini added.

Both Kimberly and Jason were speechless. Kimberly couldn't even fathom how amazing Billy was to even develop these devices. He used tech he wasn't even familiar with but was able to make something amazing. Suddenly, Kimberly was filled with emotions for her entire team, her family. She looked at Billy, her brother, and filled with pride. His intelligence knew no limits. Then she turned to the rest. Zack, her partner in crime. He was the guy who would be gung ho to whatever shenanigans they'd come up with without a second thought. Then she looked at Jason, her best friend. He could be her moral conscience if he could, and was always willing to listen, something her parents couldn't even provide her. Then finally, her eyes landed on Trini, her confidant and, to quote Meredith Grey and Christina Yang, "her person." If Kimberly were to accidentally kill someone, Trini would be the one she'd call to help bury the body, and vice versa. She loved this tiny family more than her own life and she still couldn't believe that fate brought them together.

Billy then grabbed onto the morpher and his armor resided. "Neat, huh?" he asked.

"That was," Jason started, he paused and smiled so full of pride, "So great." He walked up to Billy and placed a firm hand on his shoulder.

"Should we try teleporting back?" Zack suggested with a crooked, sly smirk on his face.

Billy smiled, Jason looked at him blankly, and Kimberly and Trini groaned. Then Jason said, "Yeah." Then they pulled out their communicators and readied themselves.

\--- 

Trini poked at her communicator on her wrist as she laid on her back the floor of Kim's room with her biology book opened next to her head. Kim sat near her on the floor, her own biology book on her lap, but she wasn't paying attention to it, but rather to her phone. Things felt as if they were coming together pretty well regarding the team. Especially with the increasing threats of Rita, knowing she could defend herself by morphing without being in proximity to the ship, or if she were caught alone. It put her at slight ease knowing it was the same for the rest of the team.

"Well, Tommy texted back. Finally," Kim said.

"What'd he say?"

"He's probably not gonna show up to school for the rest of the week. Still going to the masquerade though."

Trini hummed then said, "Tamsin said the same." Then Trini sat up and looked at Kim. "What do you think is up with them?"

Kim shook her head, "I dunno. It's weird, right?"

"Yeah. I mean, I know we've known them for over a month but, this past week..."

"They're acting different."

"Yeah."

They both went quiet for a moment, looking away from each other. Trini glanced back at her biology book. "At least we can count on this," she motioned to the still-opened book, "To be consistent."

Kim let out a laugh and leaned back on her hands, "Right." She paused and looked up to her ceiling and rolled her head. "Oh, I forgot to ask, how'd your presentation go for history?"

"Oh, it went well. I got lucky with Angela. She's crazy smart."

"Zack seems to be crushing on her."

"Please, the international space station could see that." 

Kim laughed, which in turn caused Trini to smile. Their light moment was cut short when they heard an explosion nearby. The girls looked at each other before jumping to their feet and reaching to Kim's window. Trini moved the curtains and they saw a fire a couple blocks over. "That's the warehouse district," Kim informed.

"Should we check it out?" Trini asked.

"Well, we can morph now."

"Okay. I'll send a text to the guys and let them know to be on standby." Kim nodded her agreement. "Let's go."

Kim lead the way through her home with Trini on her heels. They left the house and ran through the darkened streets and made it to the beginning of the warehouse district.

"Shall we?" Kim asked.

"Let's do it."

In unison, both Trini and Kim pulled out their morphers and stuck them outright in front of them. Lights of yellow and pink shined and their armors expanded and covered their bodies and then they were morphed and ready.

"This is so cool," Kim reiterated.

"Seriously is," Trini agreed. "Okay, Kimmy, or, I mean Pink, let's check out the fire."

"Right." They both ran to the building on fire and entered. "Doesn't look like there's anyone in here."

"Good."

"But we should try to put it out. I think I saw a fire hydrant outside." 

They ran back the entrance and just as Kim exited, something hit her and sent her hurling to the side. Almost as soon as Kim was out of view, a monster, a skeleton-like monster, entered the door frame and kicked Trini square in the chest and sent her back into the warehouse, making her roll backwards, crashing into some shelves that fell over her.

"So, you are the power rangers?" Trini moved the shelf that was on her head before lifting herself up. "I am Bones."

"A bit on the nose there, isn't it?" Trini taunted as she got to her feet. Bones then pulled out a sword. "If that's how you wanna play." Trini then held out her hands to her side as her daggers formed at her hands. "Let's do this."

Bones swung his sword in a circle then ran forward as Trini ran to meet him. He brought down his sword but Trini was able to block his sword with her daggers, then she freed one and swiped at Bones, but he jumped back and swung at Trini again. Trini fell to the ground and swiped her leg out, but Bones once again jumped back. Trini rolled back to her feet and got in a defensive position with her daggers. 

"Not bad, yellow ranger, but it is futile. Just surrender."

"Not likely." Trini jumped up and readied herself just as Bones did. Then there was an explosion outside that blew a piece of the doorway down. Bones took cover as Trini ran to the side. "Shit, Kim," she said to herself. She ran as fast as she could to the doorway, narrowly missing a kind of energy blast that Bones shot at her. The second she got out, she saw Kim on the ground, her head barely up, with two monsters in gold armor. They must've been Goldar and his other golden partner, Scorpina as Kim called her; and they were circling Kim. 

Gripping her daggers, Trini ran straight at Goldar, charging one of her daggers, then jumped up and threw it at Goldar, hitting him in the shoulder, knocking him away. Trini landed, charged her other dagger and threw it at the other gold armored monster hitting it in the center of its torso. "Kim," she said as she grabbed Kim, bringing her to her feet, "You good?"

"Yeah, yeah. I'm good." 

"We gotta call the others." Trini reached for her communicator- Alpha had mentioned they'd attach to their armor- and pressed the distress button then used the tech in her suit to regenerate her daggers. "There's another one inside the ware house, the bone one you mentioned." Just as she said it, Bones came out.

"Trini, we're three on two, we're outnumbered." Kim then brought out her bow.

"We just gotta hang on until the boys get here."

They readied themselves and then ran at them. It was a mess of limps, sparks, and cries of pain. Trini got hit but also hit. Kim shot out arrows but also took blows. Trini felt like she was overheating and from the screen inside her helmet it appeared that her shields were down to 60%. Then Kim got lifted by the neck by Goldar and thrown into her, knocking them both to the ground but when they recovered, they were surrounded. "Shit," they both breathed.

Suddenly there was a blast and Scorpina was knocked away then a flash of red crashed into Goldar as a flash of blue crashed into Bones. "Someone call the cavalry?" It was Zack standing a few feet away, holding his ax in its blaster form.

"Thanks for joining us," Trini grumbled as she pulled up Kim, who was heavily leaning on her.

"Hey, we teleported here the second we got the distress call. Billy's communicators worked!" Trini could actually hear the smile on Zack's face as he spoke.

"Can't argue that," Kim managed to say.

Then the other two joined them. "You two okay?" Jason asked.

"Kim got a bit of a beat down. Two on one, while Bones trapped me inside the warehouse," Trini informed.

"I'm good," Kim assured.

There was a loud roar and the rangers all turned toward the source of the roar. They saw the three enemies standing in a menacing stance with Bones in the middle.

"Goldar, Scorpina," Bones blurted, "I can handle this. You two go and find the dragon."

"Very well," Goldar growled, "But do not fail." Then they both jumped into the air and disappeared.

Trini couldn't lie and say she was angry they left. Bones was already strong enough, she couldn't imagine what Kim went through fighting both Goldar and Scorpina. She gripped her daggers and brought them up, planting her feet, ready to move.

"Well, now who's not fighting fair?" Bones taunted, bringing up his sword.

"You're still going down, bonehead!" Zack challenged, twirling his ax.

“God, that was lame, Zack,” Trini mumbled.

"Now, now, that's not admirable, is it?" Then Bones quickly swung his sword, sending an energy blast at the rangers. 

Thankfully everyone dodged it, but Bones made his way forward and struck Billy then kicked him away. Then he turned to Trini, who blocked a swing with her daggers, but caught Bones's fist at her neck, which caused her to drop her guard as she gasped for air. Bones then wrapped an arm around her neck placing her in a choke hold with Bones at her back. Trini couldn't exactly see, she wasn't sure if it was Jason or Kim, but one of them jumped forward and swung their weapon at Bones, which he dodged- dragging her in the process as she struggled against his grip- and used his sword to battle them out. Then Bones turned, swinging Trini and let her go just in time to crash into her fellow ranger. It was Jason.

Trini groaned, "Sorry, Jay."

"You okay?" Jason asked.

"Solid." But she was hurting. Being in that bent-backwards position wasn't comfortable and it hurt her back. Plus, her neck felt like she had a rope tied around it. 

Trini lifted her head and saw Kim and Zack double teaming Bones, before he easily knocked them both away. Then Billy came from the air with his lance and managed a hit, which threw Bones off balance. Trini tried to get to her feet, but she stumbled then saw Bones slash at Billy.

"You're all pathetic!" Bones shouted.

"Least we got skin!" Zack yelled back.

At least that wasn’t as lame, Trini thought as she finally made it to her feet.

"That's it!" Jason shouted, "You're done! Guys, let's bring 'em together!"

They threw their weapons together and created their power blaster. Jason held it as the rest stood behind him then he fired and hit Bones dead center, however, his body didn't disintegrate as it should have. "What the hell!" Trini shouted in frustration as pieces of Bones's body slowly made their way together.

Then Bones was back together and charged at them. He knocked them down, slashed at them, hurt them, but they were able to blast him again. But once again, his body slowly got back together.

"Guys, his head!" Billy called out, "Look!" Bones's eyes glowed red and seemed to be controlled his body. "I think we need to destroy his head."

"I got this," Trini said as she walked up to Bones's head, twirling a dagger in one hand, then charging both. "So long, bonehead." Trini then brought down both super charged daggers into Bones's face causing a small explosion. Slowly, Bones's body parts vanished and they were rid of him.

"Damn," Kim mumbled, "That was intense." 

"Sure was," Trini agreed.

"Jason," Billy said, "What did Bones mean by 'finding the dragon?'"

"I don't know," Jason answered, "But we should probably go back to the ship and speak to Zordon about this."

They all agreed and were about to teleport until an energy blast hit the ground in the middle of where they were all standing and sent them reeling backwards. Trini crashed into a tree, causing it to break in half as Kim collided with a boulder next to her, shattering it. Trini couldn't see where the boys landed.

\--- 

Tommy had opted to be the one to don the green ranger armor as Tamsin stayed back. She had a green bandana around her mouth and a dark denim jacket that had a dark grey cotton hood on it just in case she was seen. They didn't want the rangers to recognize her just in case. Now that the rangers had been stunned, Tommy stepped out from the shadows, holding the golden staff. Instead of the green coin in the center as it was before, there was a black stone. Goldar had mentioned it was a stone from a long since desolated planet that no one remembered the name to any longer, but they called it the stone of darkness. It would give the wielder more power, which the twins were okay with.

"Good to meet you, power rangers," Tommy taunted.

"Wh-what? Rita?" Jason questioned as he staggered up to his feet.

"No. I'm worse." Then Tommy sprung forward just as Jason got to his feet and swung the staff, striking Jason across the back. Zack threw a punch, but Tommy easily dodged it and kneed him in the abdomen before upper cutting him. Billy came at him with a flying kick, but Tommy grabbed his leg then swung him, throwing him into Jason. Both Trini and Kimberly came at him and he blocked Trini's kick, caught Kimberly's punch to his side, but then ducked her hook before kick sweeping her to the floor. He spun himself and threw a kick up, catching Trini and sending her backwards before rolling back onto his feet. "You're all so weak and pathetic. How did the coins choose you?"

"Who are you?!" Zack demanded as he brought out his ax.

"Your new best friend," Tommy answered and laughed as he ran at them again. Zack swung his ax downwards, but Tommy blocked it with the staff, then kicked Zack in the side before pushing the ax side ways, then kicking Zack back. Jason came at him and landed a swipe of his sword across Tommy's chest, which caused Tamsin to tense as she continued watching from the shadows. Tommy faltered back a little as Billy swung his lance at him. He blocked the blow, but then an energized arrow hit him in the shoulder causing him to stumble backwards. Then Trini was suddenly in the air and threw her energized daggers at him. He blocked one, but the other hit him in the abdomen and he fell back and rolled. He quickly regained himself and rose slowly. "Not bad." Tamsin got to her feet, crow bar in hand, ready to fight if necessary. "But, not enough." Tommy's staff charged up and lit up green and gold before he stuck it in the ground and the ground below each ranger's feet exploded up. They all fell backwards and Tamsin eased again, a smile crossing her covered face. 

"Guys," Jason managed to say as he slowly got up, "We've got to retreat."

"No," Zack argued, "We can take him."

"No, Black," Trini said, grabbing his shoulder, "This guy is too strong."

Tamsin's smiled wavered a bit at hearing Trini's pained voice.

"Red's right," Kimberly said, while she held her shoulder. Tommy's head fell slightly. "We've got to retreat."

Then they all began to glow in electric, color coded light, then vanished.

"What the hell?!" Tamsin exclaimed as she stood up, pulled the hood off her head and brought down her bandana, then walked out from the bushes. "What the hell just happened?"

"Did they just," Tommy paused as the face plate of his helmet receded, "Disappear?"

"Yeah. But how?"

"I dunno, but we scared them."

Tamsin smiled as she walked up to Tommy, "We sure did. What's the next step?"

"We enter the ship."


	8. Hello Darkness

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the lateness.

Hello Darkness

 

"Who the hell was that?" Trini exclaimed while stomping into the bridge of the ship, the rest of the team following suit and finding their places.

 

"Whoever it was, dude was strong," Zack added, leaning onto the railing by the stairs.

 

"He was a ranger.  The green ranger," Jason said, not really focusing on anyone.  "Zordon," he stood up, "I thought the green coin was gone?"

 

"Apparently not," Zordon replied worriedly, "The coin must've fallen when Rita was thrown into the atmosphere."

 

"Dammit," Trini whispered.  Kimberly walked up to her side and placed a supportive hand on her shoulder.

 

"The green coin is corrupted.  It uses its host's life source to morph.  It's why Rita was able to develop the green armor despite not morphing," Zordon paused, then turned his head slightly to the side, "Why she was able to morph when she fought us,” he whispered mostly to himself.  Then he looked back at the rangers, “We must find out who holds the green coin now before it eats their life source."

 

"How do we do that?  Are we supposed to go up to everyone and ask if they've found a strange, green coin that gave them super powers?" Kimberly asked sarcastically.

 

"Wouldn't be a bad idea," Billy offered; Kimberly giving him a pointed look.  He shrugged at her.

 

"No," Jason sighed, "We just have to keep our eyes open."

 

"Jason is right," Zordon said, "You all have to go about your lives as if things were normal.  If this new green ranger were to realize you're looking for him, there's no telling what he'd do.  The green coin is corrupted, it feeds off its host's life source and eventually off the mind."

 

"So, you're saying that this coin can make someone go insane?" Zack asked.

 

"Precisely."

 

“Well, that’s just great.”

 

“Zordon, is there anything we can do to save this person from the green coin?” Jason asked.

 

“To be honest,” Zordon began, solemnly, “I’m not sure.  Somehow the coin was corrupted with Rita and its energy imprint changed.”

 

“Sir,” Alpha pipped up, “What about the light cleanse?”

 

“The light cleanse?” Kimberly questioned, “What’s that?”

 

“It’s theorized that the power of five coins combined could cleanse a corrupted coin.  But it’s never been done before,” Zordon explained, “I’m not sure if it’d work.”

 

“It’s worth a try,” Jason asserted.  He turned to the team, “Guys, whoever this person is, the coin is hurting them.  We have to try and save them.”

 

Zack stepped forward, “Look, man, I’m definitely down for saving people, but don’t you think the coin chose them for a reason?”

 

“What do you mean?” Billy asked.

 

“What if this person was already a bad person?  Why else would a corrupted coin choose someone?”

 

“Or maybe the coin just chooses someone it knows can handle it?” Kimberly offered, “I mean, it’s not like we were the most moral kids around but ours still chose us.”

 

“Exactly,” Jason supported.  “Look, Zack, I get what you’re saying, but even if this person wasn’t a good person, they don’t deserve their life ruined by this coin.”

 

Zack opened his mouth as if he was about to protest, but then closed it and nodded.  “You’re right, you’re right.  We’ve got to get that coin away from that dude.”

 

Jason smiled at him in pride and in gratitude. 

 

Then an alert came from a console.  “Rangers,” Alpha began, “Seems there’s a stray putty down nearing the construction site.  And there are a couple workers there.”

 

“We’ll take care of it,” Jason started, “Then we’ll come back and figure out a plan to get that coin and try to cleanse it.”  He paused, “Or destroy it.”  The rest of the team looked at him, silently agreeing.  “Let’s go guys.”  The team teleported out leaving Zordon and Alpha.

 

“Sir,” Alpha began, “How should we plan this?  Do you think the rangers could manage?”

 

“They’ve proven themselves a far better team than mine, I’m proud to say,” Zordon said.

 

“Too bad we’ll take them down,” a voice surprised them.

 

Alpha turned around just as a teenage boy was walking down the steps, slowly.

 

“You must be the new wielder of the green coin,” Zordon deduced.  Alpha straightened himself, backing up and moving towards the side as the intruder continued walking forward.

 

“That I am,” the intruder confirmed, “And I’ve got to say, you guys have a sweet hideout here.  I’m a little jealous actually.”

 

“Perhaps you can join us here, if you let us help you.”  Zordon stayed center of the wall, trying to keep himself from moving.  He had to choose his words carefully in case he could reach out to the young man.  He’d rather have things end a happy ending than for anyone else to get hurt.  This new team of rangers taught him that.

 

“See, that’s where you’re wrong.”  The intruder stopped walking and leaned against the podium.  Alpha continued his slow movements, trying to circle behind the intruder.  “I really don’t care about joining your little band of super friends.  I don’t even care about this place.”

 

“Then why are you here?”

 

“To mess it up.”

 

Alpha shot out his arms and wrapped them around the intruder, capturing him, “I have him, Master Zordon!”  Alpha raised his arms bringing the intruder off the ground.

 

“Let me go!” screamed the intruder.

 

“Take him to the brig.  We’ll figure out what to do from there,” Zordon ordered.

 

“Yes, S-” but Alpha never finished as his body started shaking and sparks began to fly out from his back.  He dropped the intruder and leaned over, shutting down. 

 

A female intruder stepped aside, a taser in hand, and took a step forward.  “Always having to save you, shish dazha,” she chastised.

 

The male intruder said nothing as he rose up and they both turned to look at Zordon.

 

“The coin chose two hosts?” Zordon questioned.  In the history of power rangers, he had never heard of such an occurrence.

 

“Chose two heroes,” the male intruder corrected. 

 

The female intruder walked up to a panel and placed her hands on it.  “Hey, shall we do what we came here to do?”

 

The male intruder smiled and walked to another panel.

 

“What are you doing?” Zordon asked, panic beginning to set in.

 

“Absolutely,” the male intruder answered his partner.

 

“Please don’t,” Zordon pleaded, “You don’t know this tech.”

 

“On three;” the male said, “One-“

 

“Please, I’m begging you both!”

 

“Two-”

 

“Stop!”

 

“Three!”

 

Both intruders smashed their hands onto the panels and sparks and smoke shot out.  Then they began to rip out wires and anything else they could.  Zordon flickered and rolled his head as he groaned in pain before completely disappearing from the wall.

 

\---

 

When the rangers returned to the ship's command center, what they found was a disaster.  The control panels had been ripped out, the lights fluttered off and on, Alpha was non-functional, and Zordon was gone.  It was a miracle the rangers had been able to teleport as it looked like whoever did this hadn't touched the morphing platform.  

 

They were unmorphed and Kimberly leaned against Zack while they stayed to the side of Jason, who was shaking his leg with his arms crossed as he sat on the stairs leading to the platform, while Billy was checking circuit boards with Trini.  

 

"Man, this is completely fried," Billy said, dropping the board he was holding.

 

"These wires were just ripped out," Trini observed, "I can't even figure out where each one went to."

 

The two rose and walked back to the group.

 

"Think that green ranger did this?" Kimberly asked, straightening herself.

 

"Had to have been," Jason answered, "It's too big of a coincidence."

 

Zack nodded in agreement, then groaned.  "Dude was strong.  He took on all of us and whooped our asses."

 

"We have to figure out who he is," Trini said, "And we have to do something about the command center."

 

"I can maybe try and reboot Alpha, but I need my laptop and some cables," Billy offered, "But I won't be able to get back here until tomorrow."

 

"I'll come back with you," Jason said, "And you three," he turned to Zack, Kimberly, and Trini, "You guys stay in town.  See if you can find anyone suspicious."

 

"You want us to interrogate people?" Kimberly asked.

 

"No, just observe.  I mean, Rita was pretty crazy already, but if the green coin helped, it would probably make whoever's got it kind of crazy too."

 

"So, we'll just people watch," Trini confirmed.

 

"Yeah.  And we have to stay on guard.  It's not just that green ranger out there.  We have to worry about Goldar and Scorpina too."  Jason paused, turned to the wall and sighed.  "We don't have Zordon to guide us this time.  We're on our own."

 

The rangers cleaned up what they could and put anything that wasn't salvageable to the side to be disposed of.  Billy and Trini gently put Alpha's non-functional body to the side against a control panel, both afraid to cause more damage than was already apparent.  The rangers left the command center and walked through the ship, checking if there was any damage or anything out of place.  From what they could figure, everything else seemed normal.  They returned to the platform and teleported out, landing right outside of the chasm before heading back to Kimberly's car. 

 

\--- 

 

Rita laughed maniacally as she spun in front of her viewing screen of her base.  "This is better than I could have imagined!"  She turned to Finster, "Your monsters are the perfect distraction while Tommy and his sister do so much damage.  And eventually Goldar and Scorpina will find the Dragonzord and the zeo crystal will be mine!"

 

Finster nodded, but said nothing as he continued to sculpt his soldiers.

 

_"Mistress Rita,"_  came over the intercom,  _"This is Goldar."_

 

Rita hit the communication channel, "Yes?"

 

_"We believe we found the Dragonzord."_

 

Rita waited for a moment before she impatiently huffed and said, "Where?"

 

_"In the ocean, Mistress."_

 

That was not where Rita expected it would be, but she shouldn't have been surprised.  The ocean was her tomb for millions of years before she was resurrected.  "We'll worry about retrieving it soon enough.  Just make sure you keep the rangers busy."

 

\--- 

 

After Kimberly dropped off the boys, she turned to Trini who sat in the passenger seat, "Do you want to spend the night?  My dad is at a conference for the next couple days and my mom is working overnight tonight."  Kimberly hated asking, but ever since she became a ranger, she never realized just how lonely she always was.  Being an only child with relatives who lived kind of far and whose parents worked a lot did that.  She loved her parents, but she always felt alone.  Her parents loved her, that she knew because they showered her with gifts and compliments and encouragement, but she just wanted nothing more than to spend more time with them.

 

"Yeah, sure," Trini replied, "But can we stop at my place so I could get a change of clothes?"

 

"Of course."

 

The ride to Trini's house was silent, more silent than she was used to.  Trini was always more reserved than the rest, but when she was alone with Kimberly, or Zack, she was more open and vocal.  Kimberly kept glancing at her friend and wondered what was going on.  

 

Once they got to Trini's house, Kimberly had waited in the car while Trini went inside.  Kimberly tightened her grip on the steering wheel and shook her head.  Someone had attacked their safe haven and attacked it badly.  She was having trouble wrapping her head around the events of the night, to admit that they were cornered.  Rita had not only lived, but grew a small army, brought back her biggest ally, gave him another golden partner, and got a trump card in the green ranger.  Technically they weren't outnumbered, but they were definitely over powered because of them all being rookies.  Jason was right, they were on their own until they could figure out how to get Zordon back.

 

Trini opening the door and falling into the seat startled Kimberly from her thoughts.  "Sorry," Trini said, "Didn't mean to scare you."

 

Kimberly shook her head, "You didn't; just surprised me."

 

"You've got food at home or should we stop for something?  Or should we order pizza?"

 

"Pizza sounds amazing."

 

Trini placed the order on her cell and they picked up the pizza on the way to Kimberly's.  The drive was still quiet, almost deafening and it made Kimberly a little more antsy than she already was.  They arrived and got inside the house, they quickly shed their jackets and kicked off their shoes.  They settled in Kimberly's living room and ate and drank.  It was a several moments before either spoke.

 

"Are you okay?" Trini asked bluntly.

 

"What?"

 

"Are you okay?" Trini repeated, slightly more slowly.

 

"Why wouldn't I be?"

 

"I dunno, maybe because you got ambushed by two of Rita's cronies while I was stuck in the warehouse with just one?"

 

And there it was, the reason Trini had been so quiet; well, quieter than usual.  It never occurred to Kimberly that Trini was a bad partner.  She shook her head and put her soda down, "Trini, I'm not blaming you.  We got ambushed.  It could have easily been me inside that warehouse while you fought Goldar and Scorpina if you went in front of me."

 

"I know, but I still feel bad.  I should have had your back."

 

"I'm okay," Kimberly insisted, "And I know you have my back, just like I have yours."

 

Trini was silent before scoffing, "Stop being a sap," then took another bite of her pizza.

 

It made Kimberly smile before turning back to her food.

 

\--- 

 

There had been smaller attacks of putties and another monster, a strange Pumpkin headed monster who taunted by shouting rhymes at them.  Trini had taunted back that he was a horrible rapper.  Despite the fact Trini was a horrible singer, she could rap pretty well so it was entertaining to watch that ridiculous, short rap battle.  He was defeated, but Rita had shot down a beam to make that Pumpkin Rapper grow the size that Goldar was when they first fought him.  They had been able to move the fight away from the town and minimized the damage, something that Trini and Kimberly had been adamant about.  

 

The unfortunately side effect of these past couple days was that neither girl had too much time to see Tommy nor Tamsin, but it didn't matter much because the twins seemed to be pretty busy anyways.  They were late returning texts, hadn't been to school, and just seemed short and dismissive when they did see them.  It was strange the way the twins were acting, they didn't even mention their families anymore, which was a subject they loved to talk about.  Now they just waved it off and went on bad mouthing the power rangers and talking down about the citizens of Angel Grove.  

 

In truth, they had reason for their distaste of people, being two Native American teens who grew up on a reservation and had firsthand experience of how the government, and American citizens of all races, treated them.  But it just seemed odd they'd become so spiteful to the point where they started to detest the general public.  It was as if they became just angry with the world and glared at people simply walking.  It was concerning and Kimberly and Trini only had each other to talk to about it.

 

Billy had been able to bring Alpha back online, but his memory drive was a bit scrambled and couldn't recall what had happened the past week.  He had forgotten that Goldar was back and didn't remember who broke into the ship and destroyed the command center.  He and Billy began to work tirelessly to bring Zordon back online, but it was taking a long time and they ran into many dead ends.

 

\---

 

They were all gathered at the command center, not really doing anything except looking at Billy and Alpha work on the control panels.  Trini felt pretty much useless decided to take a walk through the trails, just wanting to be alone for a bit.  Things were looking pretty low.  Her home life was pretty good, but everything else just took a nose dive.  Prior to Tamsin's 180 turn, she had thought about introducing her to her parents, but now she wondered if this was how the other girl really was.  She shook her head at the thought.  It couldn't be.  When they first met, Tamsin smiled such a bright and honest smile and during their first coffee date, she stared into Tamsin's eyes and saw who she was- and Trini was always a fantastic judge of character.

 

No, something happened and neither Tamsin nor Tommy wanted to talk about it.  But then to make matters worse, Rita reared her ugly head and brought down so much mayhem and such a distraction that she couldn't even concentrate on what her girlfriend was going through.  To top it off, now they had to deal with an evil green ranger.

 

Trini reached the pond and tossed a rock into the water and watched the ripples.  She smiled softly before continuing her walk.  She didn't get far before some kind of energy blast hit the tree in front of her.  The shock wave from the blast made her fall back and dirt, bark, and rock rained over her.  She covered her face to keep from getting anything in her eyes, but a little had and her contacts moved.  Before she could open them, she felt a pull at her jacket and she was lifted.  On instinct, she grabbed the arm, and felt the armor of a ranger now knowing it was the green ranger.  She tried to kick at the green ranger, but it was in vain.

 

"Nice try," Green Ranger taunted.  But the voice seemed different.  Trini slowly opened her eyes, despite the blurriness from her out of place contacts, she could see that Green Ranger's stature was different.  It was smaller; leaner.  Then she was tossed back and landed flat on her ass, skidding back a bit, falling to her back.  "Little Yellow all alone, just like that little robot friend of yours," Green Ranger said, taking slow steps forward.  Trini rubbed her eyes, moving her contacts back in place then opened them.  Sure enough, it was the green ranger, but this time she was female.  How could there be two green rangers?

 

Trini got to her feet and clenched her fists, "How?" was all she could manage.

 

Green Ranger tilted her head, "How?  How do I know you're the yellow ranger?  I know who you are.  I see you.  Plus, I'm a power ranger too."  Green Ranger laughed and shook her head.  Then looked back up and tilted it, "Or do you mean, how am I the green ranger?  How, when you fought a different one?"  Trini refused to make any response.  Green Ranger made a small chuckle, "Truthfully, we're not sure either.  But hey, I'm not complaining.  Now I have power to get shit done."

 

Trini took a deep breath then asked, "What do you want?"

 

"What I want is to make this world a better place.  Better than it was to us."

 

"You and the other green ranger," Trini stated.

 

"That's right."

 

Green Ranger began to walk, circling Trini, which she made sure to keep her front to her.  "You wear ranger armor but your loyalty is with Rita."

 

"I'm loyal to myself and my br-" Green Ranger paused and shook her head, "My tribe."

 

Trini's eye brow flicked up at that.  It was an interesting choice of a word.  "Why are you attacking us?"

 

"Because!" Green Ranger shouted aggressively, "You guys just don't care about everyone else!  You throw debris and crap all over, not caring if bystanders get hurt!"

 

"We do!" Trini shouted back, "We're trying, okay? We're new at this hero stuff."

 

"You don't even know who you've hurt, do you?"

 

"I don't know what else I can say.  You and your," Trini paused, waving her hand, "Partner, I guess, got hurt in the cross fire.  I'm sorry.  We're all sorry."

 

"You will be."  Green Ranger paused then jumped into the air and came down directly at Trini.

 

Trini jumped to the side, rolling on the ground to her feet and reached to her back pocket for her morpher.   _It's morphin' time,_ she thought.  She brought forward her morpher and morphed into her armor, then stood up and got into a defensive fighting stance.  "I don't want to fight," she tried, putting her hands up in hopes of peace.

 

"I do."  

 

Then Green Ranger ran forward and propelled herself into the air by side stepping onto a tree.  Trini jumped and met her midair.  They crashed into each other and Trini received an elbow to her head.  They fell back down to the ground, Trini landing on her back and Green Ranger on her feet.  Trini jumped back to her feet and brought her hands up.  Green Ranger brought up her own hands and began to lightly jump on her feet, keeping herself moving.  The stance looked familiar but Trini couldn't place it, not that she really had the time to think about it.  Green Ranger kicked high towards Trini's head, which she ducked then swept a kick at Green Ranger's legs.  It connected and Green Ranger went down, but without missing a beat, Green Ranger threw out a kick from the ground and it hit Trini in the shoulder causing her to roll to the side.

 

"That's it," Trini growled as she brought out her daggers and got back to her feet.

 

"I have mine too," Green Ranger said then stuck out an arm as some of the gold armor from her chest moved down her arm and grew into a staff.  The black stone that was at the center of her shield was now at the center of the staff, much like how Rita had had the green coin in it before.  The black stone shined and Green Ranger took a noticeably deep breath.  "I feel it," she whispered, likely not intended for Trini to hear.  

 

With a fast spin of her staff, Green Ranger moved forward and swung at Trini.  Trini stepped back, narrowly avoiding getting hit, then she went forward, swiping her daggers, successfully slashing at Green Ranger.  Sparks flew out from the contact and Green Ranger faltered back, then stabbed forward her staff.  It hit Trini in the chest and more sparks flew out.  Then she charged both of her daggers and threw one, which was blocked, then threw her second which landed dead center of Green Ranger's chest.  Trini took the opportunity to run forward and did a flying kick to Green Ranger's chest.  Green Ranger dropped her staff, but then surprised Trini with a hook punch to her side then grabbed her shoulders and brought her down and kneed her in the abdomen.  It was a surprising move and Trini felt the air being knocked out of her as gasped for air as she went down.

 

"I'm sorry, Trini," Green Ranger said, leaning down and grabbing her, picking her up.  She brought her close where their faces were mere inches from each other.  With her free hand, she touched Trini's helmet where her cheek was.  "You're so weak and small.  I just," she paused, "I'm so, just," another pause, "I want to protect-" 

 

Whatever Green Ranger was about to say, she didn't get to finish as a pink blast hit her, making her drop Trini as she hurdled to the side.

 

"Yellow!" Kim called out and she ran up to Trini and place her hand on her shoulder, "Are you okay?"

 

"Yeah, yeah, I'm okay.  But Kim, she knows who we are."

 

"She?"

 

"I'll explain later.  We've got to get out of here."  Trini used Kim's arm and stood up and looked for Green Ranger, but she was nowhere to be found.  "Where is she?"

 

"She's gone."

 

"We've got to get back to the command center."

 

They teleported and when they landed on their respected platforms, Jason jumped up to his feet.  "What happened?" he asked.

 

Both Trini and Kim recalled their armor and Trini held her side.  "Green Ranger found me.  We exchanged some words," she answered.

 

"And some punches apparently," Billy added.

 

"Yeah," Trini groaned and sat at the steps.  "Here's what's weird," she started, "Remember when we first fought green ranger, it was a guy right?  Right now, I fought a girl."

 

"What?!" Zack exclaimed, "How?"

 

"Uh, Alpha," Billy said, "Can that happen?"

 

Alpha stepped forward with slower movements, his lights dimmer than usual, "Two people wielding the same coin?  That's never happened in the history of power rangers.  These two must be extremely close, not just genetically but also energy-ly, for the coin to choose both of them."

 

"Is that even a word?" Zack whispered.

 

Trini and everyone else shrugged in reply.

 

"So, like, they wouldn't be just friends or even siblings?" Kim asked.

 

"Not friends, no," Alpha started, "But siblings possibly.  But they'd have to be close.  Like close in age and connected in a way that regular siblings aren't."

 

_A way that regular siblings aren't,_ Trini repeated in her head.  What kind of siblings are closer than regular siblings?  All she had to do was think of herself and her brothers.  "Twins," she said.

 

"Exactly!" Alpha said excitedly, "But it's all just theory.  It could be that the coin may have chosen a different host.  That's actually more likely."

 

Trini wasn't convinced about Alpha's different theory given how the female green ranger spoke of the other one. However, there was an idea planted in Trini's head.  She recognized that fighting stance of the female green ranger.  She'd seen it enough times to know what fighting style it was.  She didn't want to bring it up right away, but she wanted to talk to Kim about it first to see what she thought.  After all, Kim was dating a twin also.

 

\--- 

 

The punches they threw at each other were fast, strong, and hurt when they landed.  They agreed it was best to not hold back against each other to better prepare themselves, especially since it seems only one could morph at a time.  Still, it was good training, being able to spar against someone who was one's equal.  Tommy threw a jab, Tamsin side stepped then threw a hook and landed it perfectly on Tommy's side.  He huffed then stepped back and put his gloved hands up to signal a pause.  They used kick boxing gloves to give little padding, but still a sting of a real hit.

 

He pulled off his gloves and grabbed their water bottles, tossing Tamsin hers, then taking a drink from his.  "Your form is getting better," Tommy noted.

 

"Thanks," Tamsin replied then taking a long drink of water.  "Yours too."

 

There was a heavy silence between the two as they took off the wraps from their hands.  They both felt it, the strange feeling of fighting the girls they really cared for, but it wasn't anything too malicious, they thought.  They were just trying to get across their points.  Their friends were reckless and they needed to be reminded of that.  

 

But then, things began to turn.  Something else they felt.  After so many stares and whispers and vandalism on their father's truck- a second one that occurred only a few days prior- they decided the town didn't need real protection from the rangers.  It was coming to the point where they were beginning to think the town needed to be taught a lesson.

 

"So," Tamsin started, "When do you think we should make a ruckus again?"

 

Tommy smirked.  "Not sure.  Maybe tomorrow?"

 

Tamsin nodded, knowing that tomorrow was the day before the masquerade.  Truthfully she looked forward to it, but not for any particular teenage reasons.  More of just the pride she held in herself.  She had a nice dress and her girlfriend was insanely hot- even if she was a power ranger- so she wanted to strut her stuff, per say.  Tommy felt the same.  He wanted to walk around with his head high.  They both deserved it after living their entire lives on the outskirts of civilization.  Or rather, their entire family line, their ancestors.  

 

The entire town of Angel Grove deserved to be at their feet.  And they would, the twins would make sure of it.  And perhaps, if they brought the town down, they could continue and bring the entirety of society to its knees.

 


End file.
